Back to you
by Kimmie2
Summary: A month after the ARK accident, Rouge's mysterious Internet friend, Maria the Hedgehog, decides tomove to Station Square. The funny thing is, she met Maria on a messageboard about Project Shadow. What does Maria know? Please Read and Review!
1. Another Hope

Disclaimer: I don't own anything or any character except my fan character Maria!  
  
Chapter 1 Another Hope  
  
"High winds are to be expected throughout Station Square today, leading up to cooler temperatures this afternoon. The rest of the week is expected to get colder, mild showers on Tuesday and Thursday. Winds will pick up speed in order to properly introduce winter. Make sure not to wear your skirts, ladies."  
A car horn sounded outside of a blue-bricked house, on the corner of Locust Street. A limo was waiting outside, the put putting of its engine being the only sounds on the street besides the occasional howl of the wind. A yellow hedgehog appeared from behind the front door of the house, carrying to big suitcases of luggage. When she spotted the car, she smiled and waved.  
The driver of the limo, an old man in his 50's, stepped out of the car and walked up to meet her. "You are Maria the Hedgehog, right?" He asked, confirming his information.  
"Yup, that's me. You're here to drive me to the airport?" Maria replied. She was a light yellow hedgehog with crystal-blue eyes. Everything that she wore matched with her eyes. She had on an off the shoulder peasant blouse with a blue plaid design. Maria wore navy blue short-shorts and big blue boots too. (They look like Mina the Mongoose's boots only bigger and shorter in length.)  
"Yes" He said. He motioned for her bags, "Let me take those."  
"Oh! Thank you!" Maria said, giving the bags to him. She turned to look back at her house, the house that she and her family have been living under for such a long time. 'It's finally time for me to leave the nest. I'm going to fulfill my destiny now.'  
"Maria, wait!" Her mother shouted, coming out of the house holding a jacket. "How could you forget your jacket!? You're off to start your new life and you already mess up. What are we going to do with you?"  
"Hey now, that was harsh!" Maria said, sheepishly. She took the jacket and kissed her mother on the cheek. "Don't worry about me, mom. I'll be fine by myself."  
"Okay, honey. Don't forget to write!" Her mother said, hugging her daughter one last time. "I know you'll find what you are looking for but it will be dangerous. That's why you must keep that jacket with you at all times."  
"I know, I know; you don't have to nag me" Maria groaned. Just then, the car horn sounded. "Looks like it's time for me to go." She draped her jacket over her shoulder as she stepped into the limo. Mara pulled down the window and waved as she left her old life and headed toward her new one.  
  
@-----  
  
"Shadow, what are you doing out so late?" asked a girl with blond hair and crystal-blue eyes. She wore a soft blue nightgown that clung to the window she had recently looked out of.  
She turned around to see a black and red hedgehog standing behind her. He had his arms crossed over his chest; worry lines emerged in his face. "I'm worried about you, Maria."  
"Worried about me? Why?"  
"Doctor Gerald told me about your disease." Shadow replied.  
Maria walked up to him and hugged him, gently stroking his quills as she spoke "Shadow, don't worry about me. I'll be okay; Grandpa is finding a cure for me."  
"I-I'll try not to worry, just for you.Maria" Shadow said, a small smile playing on his lips.  
"Good" Maria said, "Now, lets get to bed."  
  
@-----  
  
The yellow hedgehog woke up from her nap when a hand tapped her awake. She opened her eyes to see the limo driver. "We've arrived at the airport, I didn't mean to disturb you or anything."  
"Oh no! It's okay!" Maria said, flailing her arms.  
"I'll walk you inside-"  
"It's okay, I can take care of myself."  
"These bags look to heavy for you to carry by yourself."  
"Well, I was the one who packed them, so I should be able to carry them."  
"But I'm paid to help you..."  
"*Sigh* Okay, you can help."  
The limo driver took the bags out from the trunk while Maria climbed out of the back seat. She blew into her hands and rubbed them against each other for warmth. 'It's cold!' She picked up her jacket from off the seat and slipped it on.  
"You're lucky you brought that jacket with you, I heard Station Square is going to be even colder than here." The limo driver said.  
Maria pressed the jacket closer to her body "It's fine, I love the fall and the winter.especially windy days; sometimes it makes me feel like I can fly."  
The driver chuckled at the last part "If I didn't know better, I would think that the pair of wings you have embroidered on the back of your jacket were real."  
"Yeah, I wish!" Maria laughed. "Oh! I have an hour left to get ready for the flight, we'd better go!"  
  
@-----  
  
It was a long flight to Station Square, long with anticipation. Every time Maria looked out the window of the airplane, she felt giddy with the fact that she was getting closer to her destiny. What is her destiny? "I have to find the one I left so long ago."  
  
@-----  
  
"Hey Sonic! Sonic wait up!" Tails yelled, barely keeping up with Sonics 'walking pace.'  
Sonic stopped short, causing Tails to slam right into the back of him. Sonic turned around, "What's up, little buddy?"  
Tails stood up and dusted himself off, slightly remarking about the bump on his face while recollecting himself. "What's up!? I'd like to ask you the same question! Yesterday you were still moping about the house, now suddenly up walking about town like nothing happened! I do like the change, but what caused you to?"  
Sonic scratched his head and said, "Yeah, well, Rouge wants me to go on an errand to pick up a friend of hers at the airport. I think her name's Maria.she's an Internet buddy Rouge met on a message board about.Project Shadow."  
"I see.I hope she's not some freak! Why would she be interested in Shadow?" Tails asked.  
"Rouge said that this Maria girl was moving here and she asked Rouge if she could stay with her for a little while. As for Shadow, Maria will explain it to us when she gets here." Sonic said.  
"Why doesn't Rouge pick her up?"  
"She says she's busy."  
"Then why not ask Knuckles to pick her up?"  
Sonic sighed, "Honestly Tails, who else would she be busy with besides him?"  
"Oh, I see..." Tails said, a smirk spreading across his face.  
"Plus" Sonic added, "Rouge said it would be better for me if I got some fresh air. You know, with me being cooped up in my room for so long."  
"So you listen to her and not me, huh! Just 'cause she has sex appeal doesn't mean you should listen to her before me-"  
"We have to wait for her at terminal 57. She should be arriving soon. We'd better juice it!" Sonic said. He grabbed Tail's arm and with a burst of speed, he shot off towards the airport.  
  
@-----  
  
"Hmmm.Sonic the Hedgehog.where could he be." Maria sighed, looking around the crowed terminal 57. 'I remember Rouge emailing me on the plane (Laptop-Maria borrowed one from the guy sitting next to her during the trip) about how she won't be picking me up. She said Sonic the Hedgehog was picking me up instead. Good thing I ordered Station Square's newspaper through the mail, otherwise I wouldn't know what he looks like.'  
She walked over to the seating area and sat down on the end seat with a plop. She noticed that most of the people on the plane were businessmen and tourists; not to many people probably live in the city. She saw family members hugging and shouting words like "I missed you!" and how was your trip?" Maria wondered how her cousin would react if she got to see him.  
"Hey! Is there anyone named Maria here?!" Shouted a voice among the crowd. Maria stood up and looked around; she couldn't see anyone.  
Then she heard someone else say, "Sonic, that's impolite to just shout things out!"  
'Sonic? Sonics here?" Maria thought. She stood up from her seat and pushed through the crowd. When she made to the outside, she saw a blue hedgehog and an orange fox battling it out in an argument.  
"Sonic why didn't you make a sign to hold up like the limo driver's do?"  
"How was I supposed to know to do that? We don't have one so I'll shout instead!"  
Maria stood in front of them, bewildered. 'How could they just stand there and argue? People are staring.' Maria cleared her throat. The two of them stopped arguing and looked up.  
Sonic and Tails just stood there for a moment, just looking at her.  
"Umm.you're Sonic the Hedgehog?" Maria asked.  
"Yep! Live and in the flesh!" Sonic said, proudly. He grinned charmingly while pointing to himself. Tails shook his head in embarrassment.  
"My name is Maria, are you here to pick me up for Rouge?"  
"You're Maria!" Sonic shouted, "I thought you'd be some nerdy girl with glasses or something!"  
"Sonic!" Tails groaned.  
Maria laughed, "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you."  
"Heh, that's okay. It's nice to meet you. We'd better get your bags." Sonic said. He grabbed her and Tail's arms and positioned himself to run.  
"What are you doing?" Maria asked.  
"What do you bags look like?"  
"There brown with green straps on them. The straps say 'Maria' on them."  
"Okay," Sonic said, grinning "I'm world's fastest hedgehog so I'm about to pick up your luggage and leave the airport in record speed."  
  
@-----  
  
As if being carried through the airport by Sonics feet wasn't thrilling enough, the nighttime life of Station Square was jaw dropping. Lit up signs and street lamps covered the city, nearly all of them advertising the stores and restaurants that they were built above. People cluttered every street, some in groups, others walking alone. This all amazed Maria very much so.  
"I-It's amazing!" Maria breathed, twirling around. She was trying to soak up all the images around her.  
"What's with her?" Sonic asked Tails.  
Tails sighed, "She's probably never been in a city before. We have been living here for a long time so we are used to everything around us. Maria probably hasn't had the chance to see this; not many people do. It is a lot of money to stay in the city. I bet she saved up a lot of money to be here."  
"I guess you're right, we never had to pay for our houses because we're heroes." Sonic said.  
Maria ran over to them and playfully hugged Sonic. "This place is so great, thanks for showing me around!"  
"No problem!" Sonic said. He patted her on the head. "I'm sure Rouge is still out anyway."  
"We should be heading back though-" Tails began, before getting cut off by an all to familiar voice.  
"SONIKKU!!!!!!" Shouted Amy Rose, coming up the street at full speed. She jumped into the air with the help of her hammer and landed right into his arms. "Sonikku, I'm so happy to see you outside again. It's wonderful to see that you're feeling so much better!"  
"Uh.yeah, nice to see you too. Can you get off of me, I don't want to drop you." Sonic said, barely being able to balance.  
"Okay Sonic!" She said. She left Sonics arms and noticed Maria and Tails. Her mood quickly changed from happy to mad. She ran up to Maria and started to go on a rampage, "Hey, who are you and why are you hanging up with my Sonikku?! He already belongs to me so don't get any ideas! I saw you hanging all over him- "  
Maria was startled at first and couldn't say a thing. She noticed Sonic and Tails with big sweat drops and then she knew what was going on. "My name is Maria. Sonic picked me up from the airport for Rouge and was showing me around town. I've never been to a city before."  
"Then are you interested in him?" Amy asked, crossing her arms impatiently.  
"A-Amy." Sonic stuttered.  
"I interested in someone..." Maria murmured.  
"Well then, if it's not Sonic, then who is it?" Amy asked. Sonic and Tails, who were curious also wanted to know her answer.  
Maria's eyes watered up a bit and she rubbed them. She looked up, her eyes still watering and said, "J-Just some other hedgehog."  
Amy was about to tell her to be more specific when she noticed that Maria was close to tears. "I-I am sorry I asked you those questions, I didn't mean to make you cry."  
"It's okay." Maria said, wiping her nose on her jacket.  
Sonic still wanted to know what hedgehog could be cooler than him. What hedgehog could be.? Hedgehog.Internet.Project.Shadow. "Amy."  
Amy turned around, "What is it Sonic?"  
"Your questioning didn't make her cry." Sonic mumbled, her eyes tearing as well.  
Maria looked up questioningly as did Amy and Tails. Why would Sonic start to cry out of nowhere?  
"Looks like Sonic figured it out before the rest of you did." Murmured a playful voice belonging to none other than Rouge the bat.  
Everyone turned around to see Rouge and Knuckles. Rouge was dressed up in a white blouse and a black mini skirt. Knuckles wore nothing (As usual) except sunglasses, even though it was night. They were both wearing grim expressions on their faces.  
"Maria?" Rouge asked.  
"Yes, Rouge?" Maria replied.  
"That other hedgehog was.was Shadow wasn't it?" Rouge softly asked.  
Everyone looked to Maria who suddenly collapsed on the sidewalk. "Y- Yes." Maria said, her voice soft and distant. Everyone looked down at his or her feet.  
"But what would she know about Shadow?" Tails asked. " I did a background check while I went out to eat with Knuckles. Maria knows almost everything about him. Isn't that right." Rouge said, "Maria Robotnik Hedgehog?"  
  
@---------  
  
Kimmie's Corner!  
  
Kimmie: Hiya, I'm Kimmie, the author!  
  
Shadow: They could have read your name to find that one out!  
  
Kimmie: Hey that was mean! Why are you so grumpy anyway?  
  
Shadow: I'm not in the story yet!  
  
Kimmie: YET?! Who says your even going to be in it!? You're supposed to be dead!  
  
Shadow: @_@  
  
Kimmie: Sorry, sorry. You just can't give away the plot. We've got to be careful!  
  
Amy: At least Maria isn't in love with Sonic!  
  
Kimmie: Where'd you come from!  
  
Shadow: My head. 


	2. Discovery and then

Last Chapter: "Maria?" Rouge asked.  
"Yes, Rouge?" Maria replied.  
"That other hedgehog was.was Shadow wasn't it?" Rouge softly asked.  
Everyone looked to Maria who suddenly collapsed on the sidewalk. "Y- Yes." Maria said, her voice soft and distant. Everyone looked down at his or her feet.  
"But what would she know about Shadow?" Tails asked. "I did a background check while I went out to eat with Knuckles. Maria knows almost everything about him. Isn't that right." Rouge said, "Maria Robotnik Hedgehog?"  
  
Chapter 2 Discovery and then.  
  
"Grandpa! Shadow ran away again! I can't find him at all!" Shouted Maria, running into the lab. She strained to breathe, her breath coming in and out quick and shallow.  
Her Grandfather looked up from his work and sighed, "Maria, go look for him in Lab 10. He always hides there when he doesn't want to get tested on."  
"Okay!" Maria replied. She left the testing room and into the hallway. The Lab 10 room has always been forbidden to her, not because it was dangerous, but because it was so far away from the sector she is supposed to be at. The sector where Lab 10 is has old guard robots running about. They are so old that there are times when they attack anyone who crosses their paths. It's very rare to see them but it's important to always look out.  
She left her sector and when into the next one, eyeing the doors for the number and also looking for robots. "Lab 8, 9, 10! Here it is!" She quietly opened the door and looked in. There was Shadow, standing in front of one of the big glass windows. "Shadow."  
Shadow turned around and smiled at Maria, "Ah, you're here! Maria you have to see this view!" He went over and took her hand, slightly pulling on her so she would move forward.  
"Shadow, you are supposed to be getting your check-up, not star glazing. You can do that after- " Maria stopped mid-sentence because of the sight she saw. It was Earth, and the view was beautiful! She could see the Earth closer than in any other window. "Oh Shadow, it's beautiful!"  
"I knew you would like it." Shadow grinned. "Grandfather doesn't even know the reason why I come to this lab. If he knew it was because of Earth, he would get worried that I would want to go there. Well, I do but whatever he wants me to do, I'll do first."  
"This can be our secret place, okay?" Maria said.  
Shadow replied, stubbornly, " Okay, just so long as you never come here alone, Maria. I have to be here to protect you."  
Maria laughed, ruffling Shadow's quills. "It's a deal," She said, "I wouldn't have to any other way."  
  
@---------  
  
"Maria? Did you here what I said?" Rouge asked, waving a hand in front of Maria the Hedgehog's face.  
After the dilemma on the street, the gang went to Rouge's house. They were all sitting in Rouges living room on her black leather couches, sipping cocoa to calm themselves while waiting for Maria to explain to them.  
"Oh! Sorry. I kind of spaced out for a second. What was it you asked?" Maria murmured. Looked into her lap where her cocoa rested; she gently swirled it around in her cup.  
"I asked; how did you come to find out about Shadow's death?"  
"Well, I found out on the message board."  
"Did you know that the board was found deep within G.U.N.'s top secret files?"  
"Yes."  
"Then how did you get in?"  
"I used the password."  
"Normal people can't get the password. It was given to me because I was a spy; I needed the information. How were you able to obtain it?"  
"I told you on the board, I got it from my Grandfather Gerald Robotnik who used to work on ARK."  
Tails jumped into the conversation, " But how is that possible!? Anyone who worked on ARK has already been dead for fifty years. No survived to live up until now!"  
"Was Robotnik, Gerald Robotnik, your ancestor or something? Are you the next generation of the Robotnik family?" Amy asked.  
"I'm not genetically in the Robotnik family and I wasn't adopted." Maria replied.  
"Then how-"  
"I am the reincarnation of the late Maria Robotnik. When I was born, I had memories that the late Maria experienced; I saw everything she remembered throughout her life. I told my parents when I was really young, and they were able to find out whose memories I had. They changed my middle name to Robotnik too."  
"So, you got the password by remembering when the late Maria got it." Rouge said.  
"Yes, Dr. Gerald told Maria the password."  
"How do you know you are the reincarnation of Maria?" Knuckles asked.  
Maria said sheepishly, "It's really hard to explain, you know? I just know I am."  
Sonic said, "I remember I went to ARK afterwards because I wanted to know more about Shadow. I was able to find out about the late Maria. Your personality doesn't match hers at all."  
Tails sighed, "I can answer that one. So she was reincarnated - she still can't have the same personality, as before, it's impossible! She was raised in a different time and place and different circumstances. Your personality is made up of the hardships you went through, the time, the place, and your victories. This Maria can't go through the same things."  
"Good point, Tails." Amy said.  
"So, then why did you come here, if Shadow is dead?" Sonic asked, looking down at his cup.  
Maria blushed slightly and said, "I-I still don't believe he is dead.I can't prove it or anything but I knew he and everyone he dealt with was here, in Station Square. I thought, 'Maybe if I move to Station Square, he'll miraculously appear and I'll get to see him.for the first time.in this life."  
"We all still wish in our hearts we could see him again.alive. He saved the Earth, all for 'you.'" Rouge said.  
Maria placed her cup on the table and quietly cried into her lap. Amy sat next to her and rubbed her back, trying to make her feel better. Rouge got up and went into another room while the boys just sat there quietly, not saying anything. Rouge came back holding something in her hands.  
She kneeled in front of Maria and softly said, "Maria, I think you should be the one to keep this, not me." Rouge took Maria's hands and gently dropped something metal into them. Maria stopped her crying but she still couldn't see what it was because her eyes were blurred from the tears. When she settled down, she saw, resting in her hands, a metal circlet that seemed to fit on a wrist.  
"It belonged to Shadow, the only thing I was able to bring back of him." Sonic said.  
"T-Thank you Rouge." Maria said. She gently cradled it in her hands. "I remember when S-Shadow f-first got these.*sniff*.he complained they cut off the circulation in his hands." Maria said, between laughing and crying.  
"We're really sorry this is so hard for you." Tails said.  
Maria wiped her eyes and said, "No, it's okay. I was supposed to tell you in the first place."  
"Hey, how 'bout we turn in for the night? I'm sure Rouge won't mind us staying here." Sonic said, grinning.  
"Not at all." Rouge said, sarcastically.  
Sonic then turned to Maria and said, "I'll take you around town tomorrow, okay? Station Square is just as beautiful during the daytime."  
"Okay!" Maria said.  
"I'll help her unpack, so guys get some sleep." Rouge said.  
"Alright! Thank you Rouge!" Tails and Amy said at the same time.  
"Oh, and Knuckles?" Rouge asked.  
"Yeah"  
"Wait for me in my room." Rouge said, grinning widely.  
Knuckles smiled nervously and nodded, leaving the other two girls alone.  
Maria asked, "What are you going to do to him?" She seemed worried.  
"Oh, don't worry!" Rouge said, smiling "I just love to scare him, that's all."  
"You have a pretty strange sense of humor, Rouge." Maria said.  
"Yeah, I guess I do. Lets get you unpacked now."  
  
@-------  
  
Sonic came to Maria's room just as the first glint of sunlight peaked through the window shades. Maria's room was painted a light salmon color and the carpet was gray. It was a big guest room with a small balcony attached to it. Maria was sleeping soundly in her bed; all snuggled up in the sheets and gently hugging Shadow's wrist circlet. Sonic smiled at the scene. 'She must have Shadow on her brain 24-7, it must be eating her up inside that she never got the chance to see him this lifetime.' He wondered how she would react if they met and how Shadow would too. Sonic thought, that Shadow wouldn't believe Maria as fast as the gang did. It would probably be hard for the both of them.  
Sonic went over to her bed gently shook her. As peaceful as she looked, Maria would have to get up now in order to beat the crowd. "Five more minutes." Maria muttered turning over.  
"No, you have to get up now." Sonic said. All at once he yanked the sheets off the bed and went to open the blinds.  
"Hey!" Maria said, sleepily. "You could have told me you were going to do that." She lazily slid off the bed and headed toward her closet. "So.where are you taking me today?"  
"Well, I won't always be around so I was thinking I'd show you all the places you need to go." Sonic said, watching her take out the same-looking cloths she was wearing yesterday. He saw she had spears in the back of the closet. She also pulled out her jacket. "You're not going to wear that jacket, are you? It's not going to be cold until this afternoon."  
"Yeah, but what if we're still out by then. Plus, I never go anywhere without it." Maria said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get dressed now."  
"Okay sure." Sonic said, leaving her room. He went down the hallway and down the stairs to the kitchen area. Everyone was already up and eating except Amy, she must be getting dressed.  
"Yo Sonic! Rouge got us all donuts!" Knuckles said, pointing to a big box lying on the kitchen counter.  
"Great!" Sonic said, running up to the box and taking out six. He stuffed one in his mouth even before sitting down.  
"You're such a pig Sonic!" Amy said, entering the kitchen. She face was in mock anger with quickly turned to happy, "But that's why I love you."  
"The first thing she said." Chimed Knuckles, Rouge and Tails all together. Sonic just made a face.  
"I'm going in to see my boss today, so I don't know when I'll be back. Maybe around 'four if I'm lucky." Rouge said.  
"What does The President want?" Tails asked.  
Rouge replied, "Something that had to do with a recent crime. It's concerning him very much."  
"A crime?" Sonic asked.  
"Yes, but it's so out of our reach, there's no reason for us to get involved."  
"From where?" Maria said, walking into the kitchen, just barely hearing what Rouge had just said. Amy patted her a seat and she sat down.  
After Maria grabbed a glazed donut, Rouge continued, "It's all the way in Egypt, far away from the United States as we all know. (I made up my mind; they live in the U.S. After all, Rouge serves The President of the U.S.) Crypt robbers found a new burial place, unknown to any archeologists so far."  
"How did they discover it?" Tails asked.  
"They fell in the hole the led into it. A few civilians saw the happening and called in for police. They all waited outside the hole for the robbers to come out. A few hours later, two mysterious black swirls of gas erupted from the hole, heading west. Those gases haven't been found since then, but if it did head this way so we might be in danger. The robbers were found dead near the entrance, obviously trying to escape from whatever it was. The police tracked down the footprints and found out they had barely made any progress as far as finding treasure. They didn't find nor touch a thing and yet they were killed because of that thing." Rouge said.  
"So if those gases hit here, any villain who could obtain it's power would use it against us. That's why there is a major threat to us." Knuckles concluded.  
"Well," Sonic sighed, "It's looks like we might be getting another adventure."  
  
@-------  
  
There's the flower shop over there, the grocery store is around the corner and to the left, you can't miss it." Tails said, pointing in every direction while Maria tried to keep up.  
"This is boring!" Sonic said.  
Tails groaned and said, "Your are the one who was supposed to show Maria everything, not me. You shouldn't be complaining."  
Maria laughed. She could never get sick of their bickering. The city was so big to her, and yet every place Tails pointed out, she remembered instantly. 'Maybe it's my brain capacity at work.'  
"Hey, I know. Let's have a race!" Sonic said, "It's been a long time since had one, challenge or not."  
"But Sonic, Maria can't keep up and we can't leave her behind." Tails wined.  
"It's okay, guys. I'll race with you!" Maria said.  
"What?" Tails asked.  
"I can keep up, I haven't ran in a long time though, if you call the last time I ran two days ago." Maria said.  
"So, you can run?" Sonic asked, bewildered. She didn't look like she could; she looked a little frail to him.  
"Oh yeah, I practice all the time. I was on the track team and cross- country teams where I used to live." Maria said.  
"This is a lot more different than running in-" Tails started, but was cut off by Sonic.  
"Okay then, it's a race! To the park and back." The park was two blocks down from where they were standing; it was going to be a short race.  
"Fine then, you two race." Tails sighed. "Get into position."  
Maria and Sonic both bend down in starting position. There hands slightly rested on the cement as well as their feet. Sonic wore his usual grin while Maria smiled with excitement.  
"Ready.three...two.one...GO!"  
The two of them shot off like bullets, leaving Tails behind with a huge gust of wind. Maria was just barely behind Sonic, her legs pumping furiously while sweat dripped down her face. Sonic was surprised she was almost as fast as him! She was a hedgehog but.wow. With a burst of energy, Maria ended up right beside Sonic. Tails, who was watching from the sky, was completely speechless.  
"You're good." Sonic said between breaths. He was really putting his all into this race. Maria smiled at the compliment; if she talked, she would lose her breath and falter back. Sonic pushed himself harder and ran ahead of her. Sonic almost skidded as he turned around to finish the lap, causing him to slow down a bit more.  
It was Maria who put in the most effort; she was using everything she had just to stay behind him. She also felt that Sonic was not using his all. That was smart though, since it was a small race. Using too much power would cause him to lose control.  
Sonic's back became smaller and smaller as she felt a pain in her chest, slowing her body down. 'This is not the time! I have to fight it!' Maria thought. She squeezed her eyes shut and prodded her body to keep moving. It didn't listen; instead it stopped altogether, making Maria fall and skid across the sidewalk.  
Sonic heard her fall and immediately stopped. Tails saw it and landed right next to her fallen body. "Maria! Are you alright?" Tails asked, flipping her over so he could see her face.  
"I-I'm alright." Maria said. Tails tried to help her up but her legs were wobbly. When Sonic came over, Tails leaned her on him.  
"What happened? Did you lose control?" Sonic asked, clearly worried.  
Maria said, "No, I just don't have.good endurance.yeah.I got too tired and couldn't stop."  
"Sorry for pushing you too hard, kid." Sonic said.  
Maria leaned off of him and stood on her own. "No, it was fun. I was just trying to hard, that's all."  
"Yeah, but you scared us half to death!" Tails cried.  
"I'm sorry!" Maria said. She placed her hand on her chest again, the dull pain lightly throbbing still. "Tails, could you show me where a doctor's office is. I'd like to check in."  
"Are you hurt?" Sonic asked.  
Maria said, "I'm fine, but I need to check in with a doctor. I'm sure you get best treatment right away from a hospital but normal people have to go to doctors."  
"Okay, but we'll head right back home afterwards." Tails said.  
  
@------  
  
"That's all the reports say, Rouge. We'll have more in soon though." The President said, looking over his documents. "Would it be alright if I phone you on updates about the current situation?"  
"Yes, sir. That's fine. I'm always with the Sonic the Hedgehog and his allies, so if anything comes up, we'll be happy to help." Rouge said. She turned on her cell phone while she was talking to emphasize on what she was saying.  
"Are you sure you don't want any money or jewels for the job." The President asked.  
Rouge shook her head, "Ever since my last mission, I have realized that it is now my duty along with the others, to protect this planet."  
"Very well, then. I think we have gone over enough for today. You can go home now." He said.  
"Do you have a meeting?" Rouge asked.  
"With Mexico and Canada, yes."  
Rouge said "Good luck then." She left with a wave of her hand.  
The President went into his file cabinet and pulled out an email that was sent to him. He carefully read the email, while the guards took watch over him. Before he could finish, one of his employee's stepped into his office, "Mr. President, Mexico and Canada are here to see you."  
"Hold on a second." He said. He skimmed through the rest of the email hurriedly. He picked up his phone while he read, typing in Rouge's cell phone number as he neared the end.  
"Sir." Prodded the Employee, "This is no time to make a phone call."  
The President was about to ignore what she said; whatever was in the email was important for Rouge to know. He got down to the 'P.S' part of the letter and hung up the phone. It said:  
  
'P.S. Unless Rouge and the others are desperately looking for me; please do not tell them about anything in this letter. I'll make it to them if I chose to or not.  
  
Signed,  
  
S-'  
  
"MR. President, they are WAITING!" 


	3. Calm before the storm

Chapter 3 Calm before the storm  
  
"Are you guys ready to order?" asked the waiter, stomping his foot on the ground with his arms crossed; much like Sonic. (Y know, "I'm waaiitttiiinnngggg!")  
"Um.sorry, not yet. We're still waiting for someone to come." Sonic said, sweat dropping. Maria and Tails, who took the window seats, nervously darted their eyes out the window and back, trying to keep watch for their missing companion.  
"Fine, but you'll have to call me over when you're ready to order; I'm not going to waste my time coming back here over and over." The waiter said. He left to go serve another table.  
"How rude! The nerve of that guy!" Amy said.  
"Especially since we give the biggest tips in Station Square," Sonic added, "He gust blew it."  
Knuckles stretched and threw a few fake punches at Sonic across the table. "When is Rouge going to get here? We've been waiting for almost an hour."  
As if on command, the white bat ran into the restaurant and to their table, almost knocking over a waitress in the process. She slid into the booth next to Knuckles and threw her briefcase loudly on the table.  
Knuckles said, "You're late."  
"I'm sorry!" Rouge said, "The President kept me back. I went to check in with him this morning like I usually do but he made me stay longer."  
"Did it have to do with the crime? Any new information?" Maria asked.  
Rouge said, "Not at all. He was acting really funny; asking me questions about what I have been doing and stuff that's been bothering me. It was like he was trying to get a certain answer out of me."  
"Now, that is weird." Tails commented.  
"He also asked about my last mission on ARK, like how I feel now about what happened." Rouge said.  
"And how did you answer him?" Knuckles asked.  
"Professionally. I don't want to lose my job, you know." Rouge relied, "I didn't tell him anything about how I felt."  
"Did he look like he wanted to tell you something? It sounds like it with all those weird questions." Maria said.  
Rouge pondered, "You might be right, Maria. He was just beating around the bush, he didn't have a point-"  
"Probably because you didn't answer him right. Maybe whatever he wanted to tell you, he had no place to say." Knuckles said.  
"I think I'll follow up on that. You guys always help me figure this stuff out." Rouge laughed.  
"That's what we're here for." Sonic said, giving a thumb's up sign.  
  
@------  
  
After chasing after the waiter who purposely avoided them and eating their lunch, the gang went to the park to relax and hang out. Despite no frequent adventures, the team hasn't had to do this with work and up coming events. They settled down under a group of trees deep inside the park.  
"Hey," Tails asked, "Did you guys read in the newspaper about the winter festival coming up?"  
"What about it?" Sonic asked, not really interested. He flopped down on the grass and stretched.  
"A festival? Here?" Maria squealed.  
Tails shook him head, "Every winter we have one. The streets are lined with food and game stands. The city also puts together a play every year."  
"That's so cool!" Maria said, "I have never been to a festival before."  
"You've been missing out then!" Amy said. "The best part is 'The Tunnel of Love!'" The boys groaned at the remark.  
"I was going to ask how were planning on performing the play?" Tails said.  
"What do you mean, we're not putting on a play!" Knuckles stated. The rest nodded their heads in agreement.  
"You didn't hear? We were picked this year to perform the winter festival's play. The people who are in the plays are always picked from a hat. Our whole group was chosen."  
"WHAT!" Everyone screamed in union.  
Sonic grabbed Tails by the neck and shouted, "There's no way I'm putting on a play!"  
Amy said, "None of us got any phone calls or anything."  
Tails said, "As you remember, the performers are announced in the fall town meeting assembly."  
"We weren't there that day! We were heading out to the space colony, remember?" Knuckles said.  
"Yeah, but I taped it and found out. I thought you guys already knew." Tails said.  
"It doesn't matter now, the play has to be done." Maria said, "I'll help you, I think it would be fun."  
"It could be a romance play too!" Amy said. She was already thinking up ideas for the play, it consisting of her and Sonic falling in love.  
"No way!" Sonic shouted, waving his arms in the air, "nothing romantic!"  
Tails said, "But romantic plays are the easiest to perform."  
"So, it's settled," Rouge said "Leave it to us girls to decide what play we are doing."  
  
@-------  
  
After coming home, Maria flopped onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. 'A romantic play, huh? I think maybe something along the lines of Sleeping Beauty. That's an easy play to perform and we won't need that many people. There is a problem though; we are short on girls. Since someone has to be the queen and the princess and the witch, no one is left to play the three fairies. It looks like some of the boys will have to play them.'  
Maria got up off the bed and walked over to the window. She looked outside to see the kids next door playing with their dog. Their shouts of laughter could faintly be heard from where she was looking. On the other side, an old oak tree swayed over the property line of Rouge's house, threatening to fall over even with the slightest push. The sun had already started to set; it would be nighttime shortly. She lightly leaned against the window and sighed. 'I wonder how Shadow would react it he found out we had to do a play.' Maria shook her head 'No, stop! That's such a stupid thought. I can't believe I think of these things. I feel so stupid.'  
Just then, the telephone could be heard in the other room. Maria ran to pick it up, almost tripping over in the process. "Hello?"  
"Maria? It's Rouge. Can you meet me in front of the Zenco Company building right now? This is urgent." Rouge said. She sounded nervous yet at the same time completely calm.  
"Um.is that the building that's the tallest in Station Square? Is that what you mean?" Maria asked. She remembered Tails telling her about it and seeing it tower over the tops of ever other skyscraper. (It stands out, much like the Empire State building in New York, you can't miss it ^_^ )  
"Yes. I called everyone else over as well." Rouge said, hurriedly.  
"Alright," Maria said, "I'll be there." She hung up the phone and ran back into her room. She grabbed her jacket and stuffed her arms into the sleeves as she hopped down the stairs. Even though it wasn't that cold out, her mother's words still echoed in her head to wear it.  
Maria locked the door behind her and quickly ran out into the street. As she headed into the heart of the city, the streetlights and neon signs turned on; the city was getting ready for the nightlife. Maria kept looking ahead of her; her eyes locked on the tallest building. "What is this import?" Maria huffed, sharply turning a corner, barely missing a mother and her child. 'I have to watch where I'm going!' Maria thought 'But it's itching me to know why Rouge is calling us.'  
She saw Tails ahead of her, or should she say, above her. He was flying as hard as he could, his two tails spinning so fast that it looked like the inside of a blender. "Hey Tails!" She called.  
Without saying a word, he grabbed her hands and lifted her into the air. "Hey Maria! I think I'd better take care of you now. You look tired."  
Maria wasn't about to argue, loving the way the wind blew in her face. 'This is nice.' She thought, at least until she heard a grunt from Tails. "I'm not to heavy, am I?"  
"No" Tails said, "I'm just out of shape, I haven't carried anyone for a while. Just bare with me." Tails flew up a little higher, enabling the both of them to get a better view of the Zenco Company building. Maria looked down and watched the streets for any signs of the others while Tails kept flying ahead toward the building. When they flew close enough to touch the building, Maria saw a blue dot jumping up and down on the sidewalk accompanied by lots of other dots. "That must be them, land down here, Tails." He nodded and slowly lowered them to ground.  
Sonic ran up to them and said, "What took you so long? You're five seconds late!" Knuckles broke into a fit of laughter behind him. "What? You know I'm not used to waiting even for that long!"  
Rouge pushed through, now standing in the middle of the group. She nodded at Maria and Tails and spoke, " I'm glad you all made it here fast. I just got word from The President. He said that a secret meeting is going to be held in this building around eight o'clock, a half an hour from now. The only information he has is that the meeting involves Dr. Eggman. The President wants us to investigate and see if we could find anything out. "  
"A meeting? Dr. Eggman? How did The President find out about that? The last time I heard, no one was keeping a watch on Eggman." Sonic said.  
"The dimwit rented a room in this building and used his real name. The manager of the building sent us this information." Rouge said. She looked up at the building, as if to add suspense.  
"Yeah, but do you know what the meeting is going to be about? Does it have anything to do with the crime?" Amy asked. She took out her Piko Piko Hammer and held it tightly in her hands.  
"That is why we are going to find out. Why would Eggman just suddenly crawl out from under a rock and do something like this if there was no scheme behind it. This is what we have to find out." Rouge said.  
"So, basically we are taking your job and have to spy on Eggman, right?" Tails asked.  
"Exactly." Rouge said. "Even though I called all of you here, we only need to people to the job. The Zenco Company didn't want us to snoop, so we have to sneak around without them knowing. Once again, only two people are needed. Who's it going to be?" Rouge asked.  
"I'll go!" Sonic said, giving a thumbs up sign, "Leave it to me."  
Maria said, "I will go too."  
Tails said, "Maria, that's not a good idea. You aren't experienced enough to go."  
Sonic stepped behind Maria and put his hand on her shoulder. "I think she should go with me. This little mission will give her experience enough; it's better to do this than to just through her into a battle. Come on, guys!"  
"Alright then. Maria and Sonic, you have less than a half an hour to find the room where Eggman is having his meeting. Good luck!" Rouge said.  
Maria nodded, "Yeah."  
  
Kimmie's Corner:  
  
Kimmie: Yay! Another cliffhanger! I never stop surprising myself! FF.net wouldn't upload my chapter till now!  
  
Shadow: You know, they are going to kill you for doing that.  
  
Kimmie: Yeah, well.at least I can say the next chapter won't end in a cliffhanger. No, wait.never mind.  
  
Shadow: *sigh* 


	4. Can't get enough of black and red

Chapter 4 Can't get enough of black and red  
  
Maria and Sonic tiptoed around the security guarding the stairs and elevators. It wasn't too hard; most of them were already waiting for their shift to be over and some of them were actually asleep. Sonic and Maria stood in front of the bronze colored doors of the elevator, pondering about what move they should make next.  
"Okay, so there are over one hundred floors and we need to find one room." Sonic said, "This is definitely a job for more than two people!"  
Maria slumped against the doors and sighed, "So, what are we supposed to do?"  
"The only thing we can do, search every floor. I'll start on floor one, while you start on floor one hundred. Every door is usually left open at this time of night so all you have to do is zoom by and see if Eggman is in there. We have enough time with our speed. We'll meet on floor fifty or so, depending on how far we get." He stopped and handed her a walky-talky. "Here, we'll use this to keep in contact. If you spot him, call me and tell me what floor you are on. I'll do the same. That clear?" Sonic asked.  
"Yup, I'll do my best!" Maria said. She took the walky-talky and latched it onto her jean shorts. She turned it on so that a red light blinked. Maria walked into the elevator and pressed the hundredth floor button. As the bronze doors closed, She gave Sonic a thumbs up sign.  
  
@--------  
  
"Hey Rouge?" Amy asked, while everyone waited for Sonic and Maria to return. Tails sat down on the edge of the sidewalk, watching the people walk through the streets. Knuckles leaned against the building with one arm around Rouge. "Whatever happened to those weird questions The President was asking?"  
"Yeah, did you find out what he was trying to say?" Knuckles asked. Tails just looked up.  
Rouge cuddled up to Knuckles, wrapping her arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. "He didn't really tell me why he asked those questions. I bothered him so much so that he wasn't thinking. He mumbled something about an old friend of mine coming in contact with him. As soon as he realized he said that, he had the guards take me out of the room. I guess he didn't want to let anything else slip. I still don't get it though."  
"Do you have any friends that could reach The President?" Knuckles asked, patting her on the head.  
"The only people who can reach The President himself are his workers, associates, and people of importance. I don't have any friends who fit those categories." Rouge explained.  
"Well, there has to be another category that you aren't thinking of, Rouge." Tails said. He stood up and walked around in circles. "Mystery upon mystery.will they ever get solved."  
Since they were wrapped up in solving the mystery, they didn't notice a dark hedgehog walk through the front doors, smirking as he stepped in.  
  
@------  
  
Sonic ran down the thirty-fourth hallway, with still no sign of anyone. All the doors on all the floors were open and yet there was not a soul in them. He stopped as he saw a door closed. 'Hmm.could he be in here?' Sonic thought. 'Oh, well. Here goes nothing!' Sonic threw open the door and shouted, "Aha! There you are Eggman!" Unfortunately, it was only the janitor's closet Sonic stumbled upon. 'Man, I hope Maria is doing better than me.'  
  
@------  
  
Maria just finished with the eighty-first floor and was now running down the stairway to the next floor. She opened the door to the next floor and ran right in. Sonic was right, all the doors were left open. Still, so far it didn't matter even if the were closed; there was no trace of anyone around. 'The people in this building must leave early.' Maria thought.  
Her feet ached and her breath was ragged, checking all these floors were more than any workout ever did for her. She leaned against the wall while she caught her breath. "Alight then, off I go." Maria murmured, pushing herself off the wall. It only resulted in her falling on the floor. She used all her strength just to get back up again. 'I can't go on any further; I'm too tired. The only thing I can do now is rest.'  
She dragged herself over to a big vacant room. One side of the wall was all windows, containing a beautiful view of the city. There was also a big leather chair with two facing it but no desk in between them. Empty cardboard boxes were piles on the outside corners of the room. Maria sat down in the big chair and sighed. She could feel her feet throbbing inside her shoes. "This isn't good," Maria, said, "I think I should call Sonic and tell him it's up to him." Maria checked her walky-talky to see if it was still on, which it was. As she reached for her phone, she heard feet shuffle from outside he room. They weren't running, so it wasn't Sonic.  
Maria jumped out of the seat and hid behind one of the piles of boxes. The cracks in between the boxes were enough for her to see. The footsteps got closer and Maria turned around. She wasn't going to peak unless it was necessary.  
"This is it," said a gruff, low sounding voice. It sounded familiar. It reminded her of Dr. Gerald's voice, only this voice sound more evil. Could it belong to.Dr. Eggman? Maria remembered when little baby Ivo visited ARK. Shadow wanted nothing to do with a baby so he hid in his room all day. The late Maria was stuck taking care of him by herself. Ivo was a cute baby; she wondered what he looked like now.  
Maria decided to find out. She looked through the crack to see a big fat egg-shaped man and a humongous orange mustache. He looked like a clown! Maria rolled around on the ground, trying to suppress her giggles by holding her hands over her mouth.  
She sat up and looked again. There were two black floatly things at his sides. They looked like cats but after their heads were ghostly tails. (Have you ever seen Katz on Courage the Cowardly Dog? I love that show! Anyway, take Katz's head and make a complete black silluette of it. Then add a ghost tail. There you have it, now you have a better understanding of what they look like! I'll draw a picture sometime too.) 'I've never seen anything like them. I heard Eggman only makes robots, so those things couldn't be his creations. I wonder what he's doing with them?'  
The other person he was talking to stepped in through the doorway. Maria didn't want to look yet until she heard this new person speak. Plus, Maria swore one of those things looked at her. When the other person spoke, Maria didn't have to look to know who is was.  
"So this is the room you rented? I hope you didn't spend THAT much money on It." Said the second person; you could hear the smirk in his voice. His voice was calm and smooth with a hint of a British accent in it. (I'm sure the accent is British! Correct me if I'm wrong!)  
Maria couldn't believe her ears. 'How could this be? His voice.it's the same voice in my memories unless I'm hallucinating!' She slowly turned her body and lowered her head so that she could see through the cracks. At the sight she saw, her hands flew to her mouth, stifling a gasp from escaping her throat. 'It's.its.Shadow!'  
The figure she saw through the cracks could be no other than Shadow the Hedgehog. There stood a black hedgehog with red streaks on the ends of his quills and on the sides of his arms and legs. He wore the shoes with the jets and the same gloves, only with one wristband missing. His eyes were blood red; they weren't warm like in Maria's memories but cold. Maybe it's because of everything he when through or maybe he was just wary around other people.  
Maria faced away again, hugging her knees to her chest. Even though she hoped for a miracle, she wasn't sure if she could handle it. 'Now that he's here, I'm shaking all over. I-I can't face him because I'm so nervous. I mean, I only knew him in my memories but to see him now alive and in front of me.and without him knowing that someone dear to him came all his way to find him, it worries me too.'  
"Stop complaining and take a seat, hedgehog. We have much to discuss." Eggman said. Maria heard the shuffling of feet and noise of the chairs as they were sat on.  
"I'm not interested in one of your brilliant schemes. I came because you were an old ally; it is only right to answer your call." Shadow said.  
"What? So you thought it would be right to answer my call and not your friends?" Eggman said, slyly.  
Shadow sighed, "When I found out I survived the fall, I also found out the faker and the others were looking for me. They were worried sick. I didn't want to come to them.after what I did. They couldn't have accepted me so easily. Since the world was in danger and I was fit to fight they chose me and we became allies for those few minutes. I don't think they even realized that I found out what I was doing was wrong. I believed they only used me then and I didn't feel bad about because that's how I should be treated for the crimes I committed." Shadow paused and looked out the window at the broken moon. "That moon will never fix itself."  
"You even sent a letter to the President telling him not to look for you." Eggman confirmed.  
"Of course." Shadow said, "You were the only person who knew I was still alive. The case on Project Shadow had closed after the ARK accident but if I were seen, G.U.N. would surely hunt me down. When I answered you and decided to come to Station Square, I knew the team would find out I was here. I told the President about everything to officially close the case and to not get captured by G.U.N. Since I knew Rouge worked for the government, the President would surely tell her of my existence."  
"So, you wanted to keep it a secret that you were coming." Eggman said. One of the black creatures shifted position.  
"Yes, I want to return to them.but I'll do that on my own." Shadow said, "But enough about me. Why did you call me here?"  
Eggman smirked and patted the head of one of the creatures. "I found these two creatures had gotten into my base one night. I let them into my lab to find out what they were.to test them. The next thing I knew my mood had suddenly changed. I made awesome plans out of nowhere. To put them in action, I need the Chaos Emeralds."  
"You want me to get them for you?" Shadow asked.  
"You are the only one who can do it! If nothing else, then do it for old times sake?" Eggman said. The creature on the other side purred.  
"I will do no such thing. I won't go back to evil.even when I was there I didn't know I was doing the wrong thing." Shadow looked him up and down, noticing that his eyes, through his goggles, were a weird yellow color. "Eggman, you don't seem yourself anyway. Those plans must have come from those creatures that are standing by your sides."  
Eggman ignored the last comment and continued, "If you don't help me then-" An annoying static scratching sound stopped him from talking. The sound was coming from a pile of boxes. Both Eggman and Shadow stopped what they were doing.  
Maria looked at her waist and noticed it was the walky-talky. She tried to cover it so the sound wouldn't come out but it didn't work. The static disappeared and was replaced by Sonic's voice. "Hey! Mari*sqwwwkkk* Where are you? Did you*sqwwkkk* find Eggman yet?"  
'Two words." Maria thought, in the brief period of time she had to think, 'Oh, S***!' (Well, I'm sure you would say that too if you were about to be discovered! I edited it anyway.) Before Maria even had time to turn and run, one of the black creatures tore through the cardboard boxes; stopping short right in front of Maria's face.  
"Well, well, well.it looks like we've found a rat in hiding!" Eggman laughed. His eyes burned with a yellow light. Shadow stood up from his chair and stared at her. The creature that broke through the boxes hovered back to Eggman's side, leaving Maria sitting on the floor shaking with fear.  
'Okay.I just have to act normal, I can't look scared.' Maria thought while she got to her feet. 'Maybe.' Maria's shaking stopped and the fear on her face was quickly replaced by a smile. 'Here goes!' "Ivo, it's so nice to see you again after all these years!" Maria said. What she was saying was true so she had no problem making small talk. She tried to ignore Shadow for the moment; if she were to look at him now, her act would falter.  
"What do you mean?" Eggman asked, scratching his head.  
"Don't you remember your cousin?" Maria asked, a placid smile still hanging on her face. Perhaps if she could continue, Sonic would get here in time to save her.  
"Cousin?!" Eggman shouted, banging his fist down on the chair. His yellow eyes gleamed. "No cousin of mine is a hedgehog! How dare you try to relate me to a hedgehog!"  
'Oh no! I didn't know he was touchy about hedgehogs! What am I going to do now?' Maria thought. That's when she finally looked straight at Shadow. He was staring at her the whole time. When she looked into his eyes, she saw that his eyes were warm like in her memories, perhaps it's because he knows she knows Sonic.  
"What is your name?" Shadow asked.  
"Well, I.uh.." Maria stuttered, backing up towards the windows. She stopped and sucked in her breath, calming herself down. "My name is..!"  
Before Maria could finish, the other creature left Eggman's side and head butted Maria's stomach; knocking her through the glass windows unconscious. She was now falling down the side of the building, possibly to her death.  
Shadow gasped and ran to the edge of the window and was about to turn on his hover boots to save her when the two creatures wrapped around him to hold him in place. He turned his head to see Eggman grinning madly, his eyes glowing brighter than ever. "We won't have any of that rescuing stuff, Shadow. It's the rat's fault for spying." Eggman noticed Shadow struggling against the creatures bonds. "You won't escape, Shadow. Those creatures are too strong. The same thing will happen to you if you don't join me."  
  
@---------  
  
"Ugh.what's going on?" Maria moaned, struggling to open her eyes. She could feel the wind all over her but she couldn't remember why. When her eyes went into focus, She noticed she was falling head first next to the side of the building. Broken shards of glass were falling with her. 'I remember now, I got thrown out the window.' She looked all around her, "How am I supposed to survive? At the last minute I saw Shadow being surrounded by those creatures, he can't save me now. Sonic can't either." Tears dripped off of her eyes and into the sky in front of her. Suddenly, something came to her mind. Her mother's warning about keeping the jacket on, that it will protect her. And.and the limo driver commenting her about the wings embroidered on the back of her jacket. "I wish those wings were real so I could fly, fly out of this danger and more." Maria closed her eyes as her body hit the tops of some of the tallest trees. 'This is it' She thought 'The end.'  
Instead of hitting the ground, her body just completely stopped. She hung in mid air. She flipped herself right side up and turned her head towards her back. The embroidered wings where no longer there. Instead, two tiny real wings attached to her jacket held her up. She flew around and pinched herself to she if it was just a dream; it wasn't. "I'm really flying!" Maria whispered, slowly spinning around in a circle. "My mom was right, it did protect me. I have a jacket that enables me to fly!"  
Maria looked up at the building and spotted the window she fell out of. "I can't go back there." Maria said, "I-I could get killed by those creatures if I go back. I'm also ashamed to show my face there again, I acted so stupid." Maria faced away from the building and flew in the opposite direction. 'I can see everyone tomorrow and explain to them what happened.' Looking back one last time She whispered, "Shadow, please be safe."  
  
@---------  
  
Sonic heard the whole thing over the walky-talky because Maria had left it on the whole time. He ran as fast as he could to the room she fell out of. "I hope I can get there in time!" As he was running down the eighty-second hallway, he heard noises and burst into the room where they came from. He stood frozen in the doorway at first, trying to put together what he saw. Broken cardboard pieces were scattered around the room. Eggman was there- his eyes were a strange yellow color-and he was laughing. Shadow was there too. He stood at the edge of the broken window, tied down by these two black blob things. Also next to the broken window was Maria's walky-talky.  
"Eggman! What are you doing?" Was the first thing to pop out of Sonic's mouth. He stood in a fighting position.  
"Sonic." Shadow whispered, there was a look of sadness in his eyes as he struggled against the creatures. He shifted his gaze from Sonic to Maria's walky-talky.  
"Sonic the Hedgehog! What a pleasant surprise. Maybe to me, but not to you. Your rat is as good as dead; you are to late to save her. Good news though." Eggman said. He snapped his fingers and the two creatures released Shadow. ".You are just in time to save Shadow and to see me leave." Eggman pressed a button on wrist- he and his creatures' teleported away.  
"EGGMAN!" Sonic shouted. He looked over at Shadow who was rubbing his wrists. He was happy Shadow was alive, very happy. But right now wasn't the time to catch up on old times." Shadow! You can fly, right?"  
"With my hover boots, yes." Shadow replied. He seemed to understand too.  
"Then help me find Maria! She couldn't have died, we have to find her!" Sonic shouted.  
"Maria?" Shadow echoed.  
"Yes, she was the name of the girl who was here. Hurry Shadow!" Sonic said. He figured if Maria were okay, she would tell him herself about being the reincarnation of the late Maria.  
Shadow stood at the edge of the window and turned on his boots. "Sonic, climb onto my back." Sonic nodded and did what he was told. Shadow push off the side of the building and they flew.  
Shadow remained silent while Sonic shouted at the top of his lungs her name. "MARIA!"  
  
Kimmie's Corner  
  
Kimmie: Chapter 4 is finally done. Whew! I'm sorry it took so long to bring but this chapter was planned in my mind mostly. When it was time to write it, I found it hard to write what I dreamt up in my mind. So, I'm finally done with this chapter, on to the next! Oh yeah! I might take a longer time for the fifth chapter to go up because I'm moving. It's not a big move, but I won't be on the computer for at least two weeks. So, because of that, I'm adding a new section: Next Chapter Previews, so here goes!  
  
Preview of next Chapter:  
  
"Hi there, I'm Maria the Hedgehog. Sonic and the gang think I'm dead from that fall still! Well, I didn't make it home that night; I was so tired so while I was flying home I collapsed on top of a rooftop! What? Amy? She woke me up! I hope she can take me to where the others are, but I fear we'll both get into more trouble than I did last night.  
Next Chapter: The Chase and Awkward Acquaintances. See you there!" 


	5. The Chase

The Chase Chapter 5  
  
Hey it's me, Kimmie! Before I start, I want to inform you I'm going to use a new writing style. It's much easier for me to write this way instead of indenting all the time. Okay! Good!  
  
"Hey Sonic! Over here!" Amy cried. She waved her hands in the air with a happy smile on her face. He was standing in front of the cafe that they usually eat at. Amy didn't get to see him all night because he was searching for Maria. Poor Maria, she wasn't found. Sonic had called her last night to tell her. Amy still hoped for the best like everyone else. There was someone standing next to Sonic, a black hedgehog. Shadow?!  
  
"Amy," Sonic started, when she approached him, I'd like you to meet Shadow. Long time no see, huh?" He elbowed Shadow in the stomach with a grin. Shadow cursed in response.  
  
"Shadow, your alive! I'm so happy!" Amy squealed. She hugged Shadow, rubbing her head into his chest hair.  
  
"Yeah, I am." Shadow replied. He pushed Amy off of him and smirked, "Glad to see you haven't changed."  
  
"You like her like she is? Have you been on drugs, Shadow?" Sonic asked, in mock horror. Shadow laughed as Amy hit Sonic upside the head. "Anyway, do you want to have breakfast with us? I called everyone else, they should be here soon."  
  
"Sorry guys but I have to go shopping." Amy said. It was hard to pass up an opportunity like that but she had to buy some new shoes, the soles on her current ones were wearing out. "See you!" She said. They both waved in response. 'ËœThis is great; Shadow is alive. The meeting last night must have involved him somehow, maybe if I stuck around I would find out. Oh well...'  
  
Amy walked down a couple blocks; too busy in her thoughts to realize she was heading to the part of the city she had never been to nor wanted to be in, the slums. (Hey, every city has slums, even fake ones like Station Square, and they just don't want to show you) The streets were dark and dreary. The old buildings had cracked windows in them. This part of the city was very small but it was somewhere you wouldn't want to be. Amy left her thoughts when she saw something yellow sticking up from the top of one of the old buildings. "I wonder what that is?" Amy asked to herself. "I can find out." She pulled out her Piko Piko Hammer and hit it against the ground. She flew up into the air and safely landed on the top of the building.  
  
There was Maria, curled up in a ball and sleeping soundly. "Maria?" Amy asked, in shock. Everyone thinks she is dead and she's right here sleeping. She shook Maria until her eyes opened.  
  
"Hey, Amy... *Yawn*... What are you...doing waking me up?" Maria asked, lazily. Amy helped her stand up  
  
"Maria, I don't understand why you're here and what happened last night but everyone's at the cafe so lets go there now!" Amy said. "Here, if you're too tired I'll give you a piggy-back ride. Let's go!" When Maria was safely on Amy's back, Amy jumped off the building and landed on her feet. She started running down the street at full speed. 'I don't know how much time has pasted but I hope they are still there." Amy muttered. She turned the corner, almost knocking over some hobos. She could hear them sounding grunts drowned out by cars.  
  
Maria, now half awake, decided this was the time to tell Amy what happened. "Amy, you want to know what happened?" Amy was too busy controlling her speed that couldn't talk, but she nodded her head. "Lets see, to make it short, I found were Eggman was having the meeting. It turns out Eggman met with Shadow so he could convince him to get the Chaos Emeralds for him. Shadow disagreed to it and Eggman used his creatures threaten him to."  
  
"But then, what has that got to do with you? What happened to you last night?" Amy asked.  
  
"Oh yeah, during the conversation Sonic contacted me on the walky-talky. They heard it and Eggman destroyed my hiding spot. I tried to keep it cool until Sonic arrived but one of Eggman's creatures hit me and I fell out of the window. On my way down, my jacket sprouted real wings where the embroidered ones were and I was able to fly." Maria noticed the look on Amy's face and continued, "That was no coincidence, Amy. My mother said the jacket would protect me, and so it has."  
  
Amy nodded again and turned left. She was definitely lost but she didn't want to tell Maria that. Her plan was to run around until she could find a place she at least recognized.  
  
While Amy kept to herself, the silence made Maria sleepy. Her eyes drooped and she started to nod her over and over. After flying all night, of course she would be tired. But Maria wasn't tired enough to not realize the trap they were about to fall into. Apparently Amy was too busy in her thoughts to notice, but they were heading to a dead end. Up ahead was a big hole in the ground and Amy was going to run right into it! Since it was a dead end, she couldn't hop over it. "Amy, stop now!" Maria screamed; losing all of the sleepiness she had before.  
  
Automatically, Amy stopped running, but her body wouldn't stop as fast as her brain told her. They skidded across the street towards the hole; Amy's shoe soles that were already bad became worse. They stopped right at the edge of the hole. They both looked down to see what they would have fallen into. "What is that?" Amy exclaimed, in shock.  
  
Inside the hole was black goo, it moved around in there as if it were alive. It reminded Maria of the creatures that Eggman had the night before. The goo then rose out of the hole and floated above them, a low growl escaping from within it. Amy stood frozen in place, her whole body shaking violently. It sure wasn't a robot so Amy had no idea what to do to defeat it.  
  
Maria didn't give it another thought. She hopped off of Amy's back and grabbed her hand, saying "Come on! We gotta run, now!" As the two ran off, the goo followed close behind, able to match their speed. It flew in front of them and broke the ground so they could not escape. Maria and Amy fell as the cracked earth beneath them crumbled.  
  
@--------  
  
"And that is how I survived and made it here." Shadow concluded, taking a sip of his coffee. He looked up from his glass to see the others nodding their heads.  
  
"Now I know what the President tried to keep from me." Rouge said, smiling, "Well, I guess he doesn't have to worry about it now."  
  
Sonic yawned and rubbed his eyes; "I wish I brought a tape recorder with me. That way you wouldn't have to repeat the whole story over to Amy." Sonic was still tired from staying up all night looking for Maria.  
  
"So then, what's next for us?" Knuckles asked, solemnly, taking a bite of his muffin.  
  
"I guess we have to defeat Dr. Eggman, as usual. It's nothing that we haven't done before." Tails said, folding his napkin.  
  
"I have a feeling there's more to it then just defeating him. Think about those creatures, they must have come from somewhere else. Eggman said they came into his lab one day. There is defiantly something wrong with him, the real menace are those creatures I think." Shadow said.  
  
"The real menace, huh?" Sonic said, thoughtfully.  
  
"The second biggest thing is the case I told you about. The case must have some connection to what is happening with Eggman. I'll have to look into it." Rouge said.  
  
Just then, Sonic's cell phone started to ring, playing his theme song. "I got a call." Sonic said.  
  
"Why don't you put it on my portable speaker phone? That way we can all hear it, we're nosy." Tails said. He pulled out his devise and put it on the table. Sonic hooked his phone up to it and pressed the button to answer the call.  
  
Amy's voice rang clear through the device. "Sonic? Are you there?"  
  
"Frankly we're all here, Amy. Did you get those shoes you wanted?" Sonic asked, out of curiosity.  
  
"That's not import right now! A big blob is chasing us! Please save us!" Amy cried.  
  
"A blob? Come on Amy. Do you really expect me to believe that? And what do you mean by we're? Got a friend with you to pull a prank?" Sonic asked, laughing.  
  
@----------  
  
Three objects flew at high speeds through the sky. One was a big black blob, in front of it was a pink hedgehog being carried by the arms by a yellow hedgehog with wings on her jacket. (It's like how Tails carried Sonic, by the arms. That's what it looks like.)  
  
Maria was holding onto Amy's one hand, while Amy used her free one to call Sonic using her cell phone. She looked up at Maria and whispered, "He doesn't believe me! What should I do?"  
  
Maria looked around her and noticed the cafe was in sight. She looked down at Amy and said, "Tell him or them, to step out of the cafe and look into the sky. We're going to approach it soon." She looked back at the blob as Amy continued with her message.  
  
"Oh yeah," Amy screamed, getting more nervous by the minute, "If you don't believe me then look outside the cafe!" She was about to hang up when she remembered Sonic's other question. "The other person with me is Maria for your information! If it wasn't for her I'd be dead right now!" Amy hung without waiting for an answer. She put away her phone in her pocket and Maria grabbed her other hand. When they were a safe distance, Maria slowed down; they both watched to see if the crew would spot them.  
  
@----------  
  
As Amy hung up, everyone remained silent. Sonic finally said, "Thank god Maria's alive. My staying up was not in vain."  
  
"You still think it's a prank?" Rouge asked.  
  
"I don't think Amy's like that. Lets check it out." Tails said.  
  
Shadow nodded but he really couldn't feel that much relief that this yellow hedgehog survived. He didn't know her but judging from last night, she must me a good person.  
  
When they stepped outside, their eyes clearly showed the shock they where feeling. Low and behold, there was Maria and Amy in sky being chased by a blob. Amy noticed them and stuck out her tongue, giving them the 'I-told- you-so' look. As the blob approached, Maria flexed her wings and they shot off behind the clouds.  
  
"We have to do something!" Rouge cried.  
  
"I know!" Tails said, "Sonic and Shadow, Follow them on the ground. Rouge and I will take to the sky and see what we can do. Knuckles will find a way to glide in front of them and at least help Amy to safety since I'm sure Maria won't be able to hold her for much longer."  
  
"All right! Let's juice!" Sonic said. In a flash, the five of them were off.  
  
@---------  
  
"Where'd they go?" Amy asked, as they flew higher.  
  
"I'm sure they have some kind of plan so we shouldn't worry about that right now. We have to keep up this chase." Maria said; her eyes narrowed in concentration. The blob was getting a lot faster; she couldn't slow down anymore. As the wind howled at them, Maria noticed two small figures behind the blob.  
  
"Ah! That's Rouge and Tails! They're coming to save us!" Amy squealed.  
  
"We're not out of the woods yet." Maria said. She tightened her grip on Amy. 'ËœI'm getting so tired, I can't hold on to Amy for much longer. If I stop to put her down, the blob will surely swallow us up.' Just then she noticed something red approaching her. It was Knuckles! He was gliding to them. Maria saw her chance.  
  
As soon as they were in earshot, Maria yelled, "Knuckles! Catch!" With one thrust, Maria threw Amy at Knuckles. Amy, too frightened to scream, landed in Knux's arms. Still, he wasn't prepared, so when Amy fell into his arms, her weight threw him off and the wind that was carried in his dreadlocks left. They both fell toward the ground.  
  
Maria had no time to worry about this though; she had to advert the blob's attention toward her so they could get away safely. She flew up higher. The blob followed her. 'So it's me it's after me.' Maria thought. 'Great.'  
  
@------------  
  
"Incoming!" Shadow yelled as red and pink fell toward him and Sonic.  
  
"Don't worry, I got 'em!" Sonic said. He ran ahead of Shadow and braced himself. Knuckles fell into Sonic's arms first, his pointed tail poking Sonic in the stomach. Next came Amy, and Knuckles caught her.  
  
Shadow laughed and said, "You guys look like cirrus folks."  
  
When Sonic put them down, Amy jumped up and said, "You guys have to do something! Maria's still up there!"  
  
Knuckles replied, "What do you want us to do? The main plan was to rescue you."  
  
Sonic added, "That's right. By now, we all know Maria is capable of handling herself. Plus, none of us can fly besides Knuckles, but he's beat."  
  
Amy shifted her puppy-dog eyes toward Shadow and whined, "Can't you use your jet boots again, Shadow?"  
  
Shadow sighed, "I'll go. You stay here and rest." He switched on the jets and in no time, he was roller blading higher and higher into the sky.  
  
@-----------  
  
Rouge flew ahead of Tails and the blob to where Maria was. "Maria!" She called, "What happened?"  
  
Maria looked at her and the sky in front of her, her eyes darting back and forth. "What? Now? The whole thing?" She squeaked, looking back to see the blob gaining on her, "This isn't a good time, Rouge!"  
  
"Sorry, sorry. It's defiantly after you, isn't it?" Rouge asked, glancing back to look at it. She stuck her tongue out in disgust. "Yuck!"  
  
"I have no idea why it wants me!" Maria yelled. She looked down and noticed she was flying lower and lower to the ground. "Rouge, I think my wings are giving way!"  
  
"I don't know-Hey! There's Shadow!" Rouge shouted, pointing at a dark object approaching rapidly.  
  
"What? Shadow!" Maria panicked. 'ËœI can't face him! I'm too embarrassed I-'  
  
"Maria, look out!" Rouge shouted.  
  
"!" Maria was heading straight towards a skyscraper. Rouge flew over the top but Maria couldn't because her wings wouldn't carry her any higher. She smashed up against the building with a sickening bang. She fell backwards and the blob swallowed her up!  
  
"Maria! Maria!" Rouge screamed, frantically flying over to where the blob was. She tried to stick her hand in it, but the blob had turned completely solid.  
  
Shadow passed through a cloud and flew up beside her. "What happened?" He asked, looking at Rouge with a puzzled face.  
  
"That thing swallowed Maria, I can't get her out." Rouge said.  
  
@-------  
  
"Ugh, Where am I?" Maria asked. She sat up and looked around, trying to find out where she was. All she could see was black darkness all around her. Suddenly a figure materialized in front of her. It was a yellow hedgehog with long hair down to her waist, kept in a headband. She wore the past Maria's exact dress; her eyes, though blue, held cold contempt. If the past Maria were to have turned into a hedgehog, this would be it. (Note: Maria looks almost nothing like the past Maria. I forgot to mention that instead of having long hair, she has bangs in the front and quills like Sonics only shorter. ^_^) "Who are you?" Maria asked.  
  
"I am Xenia, the being of the great Tomb of Betrayal." She said, grinning evilly.  
  
"Then you must be the thing that escaped during the tomb robbery!" Maria shouted, "And, you were the two cat creatures that Eggman found."  
  
"I found him. Now that I am free, I have great plans to make the world my own. This isn't even my true form I'm showing you right now. But, it's the one that will take away everything you love." Xenia said.  
  
"What do you mean?" Maria asked.  
  
"I have watched your group ever since I joined with Eggman. It seems that your group is the only thing that stands in my way, so I must dispose of all of you. I know everything about you, how you are the reincarnation of Maria Robotnik. I will use this against you." She paused and continued, "Through my observations, Shadow the Hedgehog is indeed my ticket to destroying the Sonic Team. He is weak; if he sees me as I am now, he'll believe that I am the reincarnation and not you. He'll take me inside the group and that is where I will make my move."  
  
"He won't!" Maria cried, trying not to believe in what Xenia was saying. "And you won't succeed! I'll stop you myself!"  
  
"I'm afraid you can't to that," Xenia said, "I know of your weakness too. The real reincarnation of Maria would inherit her disease, NIBS. This disease causes you to loose control of your body. The nervous system cannot hear the commands from the brain from to time to time, also causing you pain in your organs from lack of necessary use. It will lead to your demise, Maria. There is no cure for it and no doctor can help you. Right now, NIBS is not affecting you too much. If you even dare lay a finger out to stop me or if you tell a soul, I'll kill you using your disease. With one flick of the hand, I'll send you straight to the final stage, where nothing can save you."  
  
Maria gritted her teeth, not finding any words to throw back at her.  
  
"Hmm, I can hear your friends from outside. I think I'm done talking, so I'll let you go."Xenia said. She cackled and disappeared.  
  
The blob disappeared too, leaving Maria suspended in mid air for a few seconds before plummeting towards the ground. Her wings wouldn't work, perhaps because she used it already. In a flash, Shadow appeared in front of her and grabbed her around the waist. "Are you okay?" Shadow asked, while hovering them both to the ground.  
  
"Ye-yeah, Â¦thank...you..." Maria fumbled while blushing. When they got down to the ground, she looked into his eyes, seeing the same warm glow she had seen so many times in her dreams. Shadow in turn looked at her too; he never did get a good look at her, she was kind of cute.  
  
"Hey!" Rouge yelled, breaking their gaze. She gently landed next to them, followed by Tails. "I'm so glad you're okay, Maria! Did anything happen to you?"  
  
Remembering Xenia's words, Maria looked down at her feet and answered, "No, nothing at all."  
  
@-----------  
  
Kimmie's Corner  
  
Kimmie: Hey! I'd just like to say I'm sorry for taking so long to put the next chapter up. I moved so that kept me off the net for a while. Also, this was the hardest chapter and will be the hardest chapter I wrote-write. You see, everything I write I already picture it in my head. Putting this dramatic chasing scene on paper was so very hard. I rewrote it five times in ten different parts because I didn't get it the way I wanted it. Whew!  
  
Shadow: Isn't there something else you should mention?  
  
Kimmie: Oh yeah! I changed the title just to 'ËœThe Chase' instead of 'The Chase and Awkward Acquaintances.' The chasing part took me forever to write and there was still the 'Awkward Acquaintance' part to write. So I'll add that to the next chapter.  
  
Preview of the next Chapter:  
  
"Hello, I am Rouge the Bat. Things are starting to heat up in my household! Shadow is now staying at my house. I have a feeling that Maria really likes Shadow; I mean really likes him. Heck, I even overheard her talking to herself about it! Just wait 'till they share the same bathroom; that's going to be fun! Oh yeah, I have to tell her about the upcoming dance! And I have to get back on my case too!  
  
The next chapter is: 'Awkward Acquaintances and Ban Aids.' See you there!" 


	6. Awkward Acquaintances and Banaids

Chapter 6 Awkward Acquaintances and Ban-aids  
  
It was during dinner that night that Rouge decided to make Maria's life even more complicated. After the chase and questioning from the team, Maria thought for sure she would get a good night's rest. After all, she has had non-stop action for the past two days, threats, and appearances from new enemies and dreams. How could it get any worse for her? Well, she was about to find out.  
  
"So," Rouge started, trying to make conversation at the quiet table. "Do you have a place to stay, Shadow?"  
  
He looked up from his soup bowl and sighed, "Last night was my last night at the hotel, so I guess you could say I don't have a place to stay."  
  
Maria kept her eyes focused on the floating alphabets in her soup. She didn't want to look up for fear he would look straight at her. Everyone else at the table was silent, probably because they had used up there voices to throw questions at her. Even Sonic didn't say a word, although he looked interested in the conversation.  
  
"I know!" Rouge said, smiling, "Why don't you say with me?"  
  
Maria practically spit out her soup.  
  
"If that's okay." Shadow said, trailing off. He glanced at Maria and back to Rouge.  
  
"Maria is staying with me too." Rouge said as if she just remembered. She turned to Maria and asked, "Maria, is it okay with you?"  
  
Maria looked up to see both of them staring at her as well as everyone else. She looked back down and said, a little too loudly "Yeah! Sure! It's fine with me! Doesn't bother me at all!"  
  
"Then it's settled." Rouge said, "I'll help you move your things in."  
  
@----------  
  
Maria climbed out of bed, realizing it was way too early to go to sleep. She gazed at her clock that said 6:30 and sighed. 'I better go downstairs and wait for them to get back, I don't want to be rude.' She went into her closet and put on a bathrobe over her large nightshirt. She walked down the stairs to the living and plopped down on the leather love seat. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. 'I wanted to see Shadow so bad, so why am I acting like this? I-I have this weird feeling every time I see him, I don't think that's how meeting an old friend should feel like. I can't help but not look at him and ignore him because when I don't the feeling gets so strong it hurts. I know it's not my disease; this is different. But, if I can deal with my disease; then I can deal with this.'  
  
Just then she heard the front door open with a friendly greeting and the shuffle of feet. "Hello, we're back!" It was Rouge's voice. 'Shadow would never say something like that,' Maria giggled to herself. 'I guess it would be easier if I went to meet them.' She got and went to the front door. Rouge was messing with her keys trying to find the one that locks the door. Shadow was standing near the stairs holding onto one bag of luggage.  
  
"Do you guys need help?" She asked, trying to hide a blush from creeping up her face.  
  
"I'm fine, but you can show Shadow to his room. It's the first on the right." Rouge said. She pulled out a purple key. "Ah ha! I found it!"  
  
"Okay then." Maria said. She looked at Shadow and nodded, "Follow me." She started up the stairs with him right behind her. It felt as if there was no one behind her; she couldn't hear his footsteps as they climbed the stairs. But then, it must be from battle experience; having to be quiet all the time. She opened the door on the right and stepped in.  
  
It was a sky blue room with dark blue carpeting. The bed was right near the window and the closet was opposite that. The room had wood furniture too. Shadow placed his luggage onto the bed and Maria snapped to attention. "Oh, do you need help?"  
  
"That would be nice, thanks." Shadow said. He handed her some cloths and went back to unpacking. She went over to a wood dresser and started putting them into the draws. "What brings you to Station Square?"  
  
The question startled Maria at first, as she wasn't expecting him to make conversation. He seemed like the silent type even though he was very talkative when he was little. "I came to find.someone."  
  
"Did you find that someone?" Shadow asked, moving some shoeboxes into the closet.  
  
Maria sucked in her breath trying to think of an answer. Did she want to tell him? How could she? "I found him.but.he doesn't know I've been looking for him."  
  
"Well, I think you shouldn't leave him in the dark too long." Shadow said. He went back over to his bag.  
  
"I know, but it's hard because he doesn't know who I am. And I'm shy." Maria said, she felt that it was so easy to talk to him.  
  
"I guess you'll just have to build up your courage. I'm not an expert in this field." Shadow said. He pulled out some bathroom supplies and closed his empty bag. "Can you tell me where the bathroom is?"  
  
"Down the hall, across from my room, the salmon colored one." Maria said. When he left, she hugged the shirt she was folding. She rubbed it against her face and smelled his scent. It smelled like pine so he must have been living in a forest before coming to Station Square. 'I'll tell him.soon I hope.'  
  
@--------  
  
"News at Noon continues with the information on the case against former basketball player.."  
  
Shadow and Maria sat on the leather couches while Rouge sat at a high table behind them with papers spread out all over it. She scratched her head and scribbled in something. "Rouge, what are you working on?" Maria asked.  
  
"Oh this?" Rouge asked "The same old case with the creature. I was asked to fill out what I saw yesterday. It's really hard though to give accurate details though."  
  
Just then the phone rang. "I'll get it." Maria said. She ran over and picked it up. She nodded her head a couple times and hung up. "I've got to go out, I'll be back in a bit."  
  
"What for?" Shadow asked.  
  
"I got a call from my doctor. I have a checkup today." Maria said, running upstairs. She put her jacket on and went toward the door.  
  
"Oh yeah! Maria-never mind, you have to go now. Go visit Amy's house on your way back because I won't be home to tell you about the dance." Rouge said.  
  
"Dance?" Maria asked.  
  
"Go! Go! You'll be late!" Rouge said, making shushing motions with her hands. "Ask Amy about it."  
  
"Okay then." Maria said, sweat dropping. "See you guys."  
  
@-------  
  
"Ms. Maria, I just went over the tests from last visit, it seems the disease hasn't gotten any stronger but it hasn't lessened." Dr. Hodge said, looking over the papers in his hand. "I just can't see how you got NIBS. The disease died out over 50 years ago, and it was incurable then."  
  
"I told you before, I am the reincarnation of the last person to have it, so I got it from her. I know it sounds bizarre but you have to believe me. By the way, you said you had something important to tell me." Maria said.  
  
He sighed and said, "I just went over the papers for your friend Shadow the Hedgehog and I am truly astonished at what I found."  
  
"You mean how he was created so well?" Maria asked.  
  
"No." Dr. Hodge said, "He has the cure."  
  
"What?" She shouted.  
  
"The only way for you to be cured of NIBS is to get antibodies that contain enough power to wipe out this powerful disease without causing damage to the rest of the body. No such thing has existed, until now. Shadow has those antibodies and they aren't in use. It's as if they are waiting to be used." He said.  
  
"Then-then how do I get them into my body? Through surgery? Or through a blood donation?" Maria asked.  
  
"A surgery wouldn't make any sense." Dr. Hodge said, sweat dropping. "Normally it would be through a donation but these antibodies are new and delicate, I believe injecting them into you could destroy them or change them. There's not enough to play around with either; only enough for once."  
  
"Once? What are you talking about? And then how am I supposed to get them?" Maria asked, completely confused.  
  
"I'll be straight with you. The only way to get them is through.sexual intercourse. That is where they are located and as I said before, it's a one shot deal. I'm afraid getting that to happen, is up to you." He said, pushing up his glasses.  
  
"I-I understand." Maria said, shaking and blushing at the same time. How could she get him to do that for her when, he didn't know anything about her?  
  
@---------  
  
Maria hugged a pink heart pillow to her chest as she listened to the information Rouge was supposed to tell her.  
  
"There's going to be a dance next week at the plaza. If you want to go, Rouge and I were planning to invite you to come with us to look for dresses. So, do you want to go?" Amy asked. She laid some tea on the table in front of them and smiled. "Here, have some."  
  
Maria nodded and took the pink mug and drank from it. She sighed and said, "A dance, huh? It sounds wonderful. I think I'll take you up on that offer. Are the boys going?"  
  
"Yep, all of them!" Amy said. "I hope I can dance with Sonic, at least once."  
  
"I'm sure you'll get to." Maria said, laughing. She looked at the mug and thought, 'this will be the perfect time to tell Shadow about being the reincarnation. If he can accept me for the past Maria then I can tell him about NIBS. I'm sure he'd help me then. I wonder.what kind of dress I should look for?'  
  
@-------------  
  
As Maria climbed up the staircase, sounds of water coming from the bathroom could be heard. 'Someone must be using the shower. Man, I thought I could sneak in there before anyone else.' She went into her room and grabbed her night cloths. She leaned against the wall next to the bathroom door and waited. She heard the water turn off. "Hey, I'm waiting to take my shower next so don't take too long!" Maria shouted through the door. The next thing she knew, the door opened and reviled a very wet Shadow. He had a white towel wrapped around his quills and one around his mid section. His fur was messed up probably from the futile attempts to dry himself. Maria could feel her nose starting to bleed; he looked so sexy.  
  
"What did you say? I couldn't hear you." Shadow said, staring at her.  
  
"Umm.erm.that I w-was getting in next so d-don't take to long, that's all." Maria stuttered, trying to take her eyes off of him.  
  
"Oh yeah, sure. I'm almost done. I still have to blow dry my fur but I can do that in my room." Shadow said, thoughtfully. He went back into the bathroom and closed the door.  
  
"Man," Maria sighed, "I don't know how much longer I can take this." She put her hand over her nose and ran to get a tissue.  
  
Later that night, Rouge returned home. She and Maria hung out in Maria's room, talking about anything they could think of. Shadow turned in for the night, saying he was really tired.  
  
"So, do you think a red dress would stun Knuckles? You know, it being the color of his fur and all." Rouge asked.  
  
"Well, I think if it sparkled or had sequins that would do better than just a plain dress. You'd also have to buy red eye shadow and lipstick so it would match perfectly." Maria replied.  
  
"I think you're right, but then.what about purple?"  
  
@--------  
  
Maria (Human Maria) ran past the corridors of ARK holding up her skirts with her frail hands. She ran as fast as she could but she was having trouble. Still, she wore a smile on her face because of who was chasing her.  
  
A black and red hedgehog glided across the floor laughing as he followed her. He was much faster than she, but he wanted her to win the race just so she could be happy.  
  
The hallway in front of her had gotten darker by the minute;, her vision was failing her. All of a sudden, her body wouldn't listen to her. She stopped in mid-run and collapsed onto the ground. As she fainted, she could hear Shadow calling her name. It was such a shame he always had to worry about her. He had such a strong heart.  
  
"MARIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
@--------  
  
"MARIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
Maria woke up from her dream, sitting up straight and looking wildly about her. That scream.the scream had woken her up.  
  
"No! Maria! NOOO!!!!"  
  
It was coming from Shadow! Maria got out of bed and ran to his room. When she got there, Rouge was already standing by his bed. Rouge ran over to her and pointed at him saying, "Shadow's having a nightmare, no doubt about you."  
  
Maria went over to his bed and looked at him. He was tossing and turning back and forth; his sheets were getting twisted with his movement. He was sweating and his face showed pure anguish. "Maria.don't die.you can't leave.me." Shadow muttered.  
  
Maria sat on the edge of the bed and stroked his face, gently saying, "Shadow, I'm here. I'm here." She was crying.  
  
"Don't.leave." Shadow muttered, grinding his teeth.  
  
She leaned on top of him and hugged him; pressing her cheek against his. Maria stroked his chest hair as she spoke, "Shadow, I'm here, I'm back. You don't have to worry anymore.I.won't leave you again."  
  
Shadow calmed down and fell back to sleep, no longer squirming around. Maria got up and fixed the covers so that they were normal again. She slowly walked over to where Rouge was standing and whispered, "I don't know how long I can put off telling him."  
  
"Then don't at all." Rouge whispered back, closing the door behind them. "You told the rest of us and Shadow is the one who needs to know the most."  
  
"I know," Maria said, "But I'm scared."  
  
"Scared of what?" Rouge asked.  
  
"That, he won't believe me." Maria said.  
  
Rouge slightly smiled and put her arm around Maria. "Look, if he believed you in his dreams, he'll believe you in real life. Plus, the dance is right around the corner. You can tell him then, it will be perfect."  
  
"I guess you are right." Maria said, half heartily. She still felt so sad that Shadow was still going through so much pain; she wanted him to be done with it.  
  
@----------  
  
Maria spent the next morning in her room deep in thought. Shadow woke up that morning acting as if nothing happened' probably because it happened to him all the time so it wasn't a big deal. Either way, she and Rouge didn't mention anything about it.  
  
Maria sat at her desk, combing her quills with a brush. She looked at her self in the mirror noticing how much she looked like the past Maria.and how much she didn't. She sighed and looked down at her hands, which were covered with band-aids. She didn't know she was that bad at sowing. All morning she had been working on her dress for the dance. Instead of going out to buy a dress, Maria decided to make one especially for the dance...for Shadow and the sake of her confession to him. The blue and white dress lay neatly on her bed with some of the hand stitches coming undone already. But, this was to be expected. It wasn't easy making a dress you've only seen from your dreams. Yes, it was the late Maria's dress she was trying to make.  
  
Maria looked at her reflection again and saw the bags under her eyes. She sighed and said; "I learned something else last night while I stayed up to make my dress. I found out what the feeling I keep getting really is. That soft feeling inside my heart every time I see Shadow; the same feeling that hurts so bad when I'm not near him. I know its love. Ever since I first saw those memories of him, I fell in love. A dark stranger that only existed in the recesses of my mind, always. I love you, Shadow-Kun."  
  
Rouge, whom had been ease dropping on Maria, sighed with content, "I knew it all along she was in love with him. I just needed to hear her say it. This is great! I'll be playing matchmaker! I just hope she'll confess his feelings to him to" Rouge then thought, "I need to call Amy, she may need some help on that dress she is making."  
  
@-----------  
  
Shadow leaned back on the leather couch with his eyes closed, his hand extended towards the ceiling. He opened his eyes and looked at his hand, "Maria.I heard you last night, I know I did. You never said those things to me before in my dreams. I know something is going to happen soon so please lend me your strength. Maria."  
  
@----------  
  
Kimmie's Corner:  
  
Kimmie: Hello all! I'm back! This chapter was so much fun so I hope you enjoyed it! School has just started for me and my mom is really making me buckle down this year. That means, I'll won't have more than a little time to work on my chapter each week. That means that it will be a longer wait for the upcoming chapters but don't worry! I'm going to finish this story if it's the last thing I do! (School is the reason I didn't get this chapter up so fast) Okay then.  
  
Shadow: Kimmie you forgot to.  
  
Kimmie: Oh yeah! If you want to read more Sonic from me, please check out my other fanfic, The Journey To Station Square. It's a Shadow and Mina Mongoose fanfic, a unique pairing for fanfiction.net. It's very good though! I'm trying to get other people to support the pairing so please see if you like them! I greatly appreciate reviews too, since I haven't gotten any yet. (I probably put the fanfic up when no one was looking ^_^;) See ya!  
  
Preview of next chapter:  
  
"Hi, I'm Tails "Miles" Prower. The dance is happening and I wonder what's going to happen. By the looks of Maria's bandaged hands, I suppose she has something made for the dance. I hope it turned out all right! I hope she is all right too. After fainting when picking up Cream from the train station, I'm surprised she's even going. Shadow seems worried too; he says it is the calm before the storm. I'm not too worried though, even though I believe what Shadow says. Who is this girl claiming to be the reincarnation of Maria? And why is our Maria so scared of her? I hope things will get sorted out but right now it's all up to Shadow. I hope I get to dance with Cream.  
  
The next chapter is "The Confession Of Truth And The Double Lies" See you there!" 


	7. The Confession of Truth and Double Lies

The Confession of Truth and Double Lies Chapter 7  
  
Kimmie: Hi there! I'm so happy with this chapter; I really felt that I'm bringing out their personalities. Like, I actually got Shadow talking.sigh. I hope you enjoy it!  
  
"MARIA, STOP! STOP! STOP!" Amy yelled, frantically. Rouge eyed her and sighed.  
  
Maria looked down at the needle and thread she held in her hands and asked, "What am I doing wrong now?"  
  
"Your stitches are too big! If you put the dress on it will fall apart." Amy groaned, "Here, let me do it." She took the dress and with the needle, unthreaded Maria's mistakes.  
  
"Rouge sighed again and said, "I hope this won't take too much longer. We still have to buy our dresses."  
  
"This is a worthy cause," Amy lectured, "Because it's for love."  
  
"Huh?" Maria exclaimed, "How would you know about that?"  
  
"Sorry, but I told Amy that you love Shadow." Rouge said.  
  
"But I didn't tell you, how'd you know?" Maria blurted, blushing. She squeezed her hands together in frustration while looked at Amy's fingers work magic on the dress.  
  
"I overheard you talking to yourself, Maria." Rouge said, laughing lightly. When Maria made a face, Rouge smiled and said, "Hey, you are lucky I heard you. If Shadow had ease dropped instead, well, I don't know what would have happened."  
  
"You guys." Maria groaned. She knew it would be harder to tell Shadow everything now that she had them there to push her.  
  
@--------------  
  
"Hey, look who's picking out a tuxedo." Rouge purred over Amy's shoulder. She pointed to the kid's section of the department store to see Tails.  
  
"Awww.how cute." Amy squealed.  
  
Maria sweat dropped and said, "Don't you guys remember everyone is going to the dance? That includes Tails."  
  
"Hey," Amy pointed out, "Since Tails is here, I bet the rest of the guys are in the men's department. Let's go see!"  
  
"Good idea," Rouge added, "Knuckles doesn't have much sense when it comes to buying cloths; he is so gullible he'll end up paying three times the normal price."  
  
Maria, not wanting to run into Shadow said, "Well, I'm going to see how Tails is doing. Good luck!" Maria walked across the store to the kid's department. On her way she almost tripped over a pile of socks that haven't been put on the shelves yet.  
  
Tails noticed her coming and said, "Hi, Maria. Did you find a dress?"  
  
"Yeah.well, I decided to make one for the dance. I'm just here to help Amy and Rouge look for their dresses." Maria said, blushing a bit.  
  
"Did they have any luck?" Tails asked, while fingering a green tux.  
  
"Lets see." Maria murmured, placing her hand under her chin. It was hard to recall where they started because they had been there so long. "Amy found this pink dress with a bunch of yellow pearls in the front. She still wants to look more but I think it looks really nice on her. Rouge has been having a hard time deciding between a red dress and a purple dress. She really wants to amaze Knuckles this year."  
  
"She loves him so much," Tails said, smiling. "All she wants to do is make him happy. I think that she's too thick-headed to realize that anything she does will make Knux happy."  
  
"Except taking the Master Emerald." Maria added, giggling. They both fell into a fit of laughter for a moment. When they calmed down, Maria asked, "Have you found a tux you like?"  
  
"I want to wear something with green in it, but this tux is lime green and I'd never wear that." Tails said.  
  
"I know!" Maria exclaimed. She spotted a black tux that was being displayed on a mannequin, the under shirt was forest green instead of white. "How about this? The whole thing isn't green so you won't look weird but there is enough to look nice."  
  
"Hmmm, I knew I should have brought a girl with me." Tails said, "I would have never noticed that."  
  
"Why don't you try it on?" Maria asked.  
  
@----------  
  
"How's this one Shadow?" Sonic asked, stepping out of the dressing room wearing a dark blue tux. "I'm all blue and totally cool!"  
  
Shadow sweat dropped and said, "That looks ridiculous, Sonic. Wear a black tux like everyone else."  
  
"Everyone else! I can't do that!" Sonic shouted, "I'm not everyone else, I'm Sonic the -"  
  
"Can it." Shadow interrupted, crossing his arms.  
  
Near the cash register, Knuckles was talking with a clerk about the tux he was paying for. "So, your saying that this tuxedo is made from fine velvet and it's worth a load of money?"  
  
"Yes, you are lucky you're getting it at such a fair price." The clerk said. She reached behind the counter and pulled out gold pocket watch. "See this watch, it's pure gold. It has a legend behind it too. Whoever wears it will lead a happy life."  
  
"Really?" Knuckles asked, the word 'gullible' written all over his face.  
  
"Yeah," said a white bat, stepping up behind Knuckles. "And it will leave you in poverty after you buy it."  
  
"Rouge? What are you doing here?" Knuckles asked, clearly surprised.  
  
"Same thing you are sweetie." Rouge cooed, pulling him away from the counter. "But I think you'll need my help in finding something that isn't ridiculously over priced."  
  
"Sonic, you look great!" Amy squealed.  
  
Sonic grinned until Shadow said, "Sonic, don't listen to her. You could be wearing a paper bag and she'd still think you're hip."  
  
"That's not very nice Shadow!" Amy yelled.  
  
"True." Shadow said, his eyes half closed, "But I'm only pointing out the obvious."  
  
"Fine. I'll go look for another one." Sonic moaned, dragging himself back to the tuxes. Amy ran after him to make sure he didn't come back with another goofy tux.  
  
@------------  
  
Maria and Tails were sitting on a bench right outside the store, watching the people pass by. Tails had brought the tuxedo and was now carrying it in a bag, laid neatly between them.  
  
"Do you think they'll know we're here?" Maria asked.  
  
"We can always go back inside but I'm sure it will take them a long time to find what they are looking for. Tails said.  
  
"You seem really excited about the dance. Is there someone you want to dance with?" Maria asked, nudging him in the ribs.  
  
"Well." Tails blushed. "A friend of mine is supposed to be arriving today so that we can go to the dance together. Her name is Cream."  
  
"Cream? How cute! When are you going to get her?" Maria asked, smiling.  
  
"She said she would call me." Tails replied.  
  
Just then, the gang came out of the store, all of them carrying bags. "Hey, guys! What are you doing out here?" Sonic asked.  
  
"We were just waiting for you all to finish shopping. Did you find anything?" Maria asked, blushing slightly when she saw Shadow.  
  
"Everyone but me." Rouge said. "I'll have to go back later to find a dress."  
  
"Maybe if you didn't spend so much time worrying about what Knuc-" Amy started, before Rouge stepped on her foot. Knuckles looked quizzingly at the two while Shadow sighed.  
  
@-------------  
  
Maria couldn't stop the butterflies from swimming around in her stomach as she modeled her dress in the mirror. It came out perfectly; Amy did a great job in fixing it. She swirled around and watched her dress fly around with her. She looked one last time in mirror, brushing back a lose quill and sighed.  
  
Everyone was already downstairs while Maria was getting ready.  
  
Sonic was wearing a black tux with an artificial blue rose in his pocket. He was speaking with Shadow who was wearing a normal black tux but without the bowtie. Tails wore his black tux with the green undershirt and Knuckles wore a dark purple tux. (So dark you could just barely tell it's purple) Rouge decided on wearing a red sequin dress with white gloves. Amy wore a pink dress with a bunch of yellow pearls on the front.  
  
When Maria walked into the room, all eyes turned toward her. Maria blushed and quickly looked down at her feet. She was wearing the late Maria's dress; a white gown with a blue over jacket. She looked up just a bit to see everyone's reaction. Rouge and Amy nodded their approval, and the guys just basically smiled. All except Shadow, he rarely ever smiled. His eyebrows rose a little in surprise, but he didn't say a word.  
  
"Now that everyone's here, we can get going." Sonic said.  
  
Maria, Sonic and Amy left in one car while Shadow, Rouge, Tails and Knuckles left in the other. Maria gazed out the window, admiring the different colored lights as they swirled by. 'Tonight's the night I tell Shadow everything. It's tonight or bust! I have to do this.'  
  
@----------------  
  
As soon as they entered the building, they saw people all over getting ready for the first dance. Rouge and Knuckles ran off towards the dance floor before anyone could stop them. Amy grabbed Sonic's hand and slowly dragged him as near as she could get him to the dance floor. Shadow wandered over to the food table, leaving Maria and Tails standing stupefied at the entrance.  
  
"So, what happened to Cream?" Maria asked.  
  
Tails looked down sadly and said, "Her flight into Station Square was canceled so she couldn't come."  
  
"Don't worry, Tails. You'll manage, you're a good guy and that's what every female truly wants. Just have fun tonight." Maria said, smiling.  
  
Tails nodded and said, "You're right. I'll have fun." He ran off toward the dance floor too.  
  
Maria walked in, gawking at all the people dressed up. The floor was like an array of dancing colors. She could see the sparkle from Rouge's dress through the crowd. She looked over at Shadow who had a crowd of girls surrounding him.  
  
"It looks like that's a tough crowd to break." Said a voice behind her. Maria turned around to see a fox with cream-colored fur and teal eyes. She wore a short teal dress and was wearing a blue necklace around her neck that seemed to look like it was made of ice. "My name is Yukina. I'm please to meet you." She held out her hand.  
  
"Nice to meet you too. I'm Maria." She said, shaking Yukina's hand. She looked over at Shadow and sighed, "You're right. It's too thick."  
  
"Ah, don't worry about it. If you have something to say to him I'm sure he'll listen." Lukina said, winking at her. "I hope you have a nice night. See you around." She smiled and slipped through the dancing crowd before Maria could respond.  
  
Maria felt a light tap on her shoulder. When she turned around she was face to face with Shadow. Apparently he left the crowd of girls while she wasn't looking. "Hi, Shadow." Maria said, slightly blushing.  
  
"I wanted to know if you'd like to dance. Will you?" Shadow asked, holding his hand out to her. She nodded and placed her hand in his. "Great. A new song has just started, we'd better get onto the dance floor." He said, smiling. His smile practically melted Maria's heart; it was full of warmth and ease, no fear or sadness from the previous night.  
  
A slow song echoed through the dance floor, calling upon every couple there. Maria had spotted Knuckles and Rouge and Sonic and Amy entering the crowd of dancers. They all looked very content. Shadow put his arms around her waist and drew her closer to him. She hesitantly put her arms around his neck but then noticed that that was what everyone else was doing. As they slowly danced, Maria laid her head on his shoulder and sighed. 'If only it could always be like this,' Maria thought, 'but I still have to tell him."  
  
As the song finished, Maria pulled away from him and asked, "Shadow, I have something to tell you. Can we go some place private?"  
  
"Yeah, sure." Shadow replied.  
  
They left the dance floor and went into the dark hallway right out side. They stooped next to an open window; moonlight resting on their faces.  
  
"What did you want to tell me?" Shadow asked, looking at her.  
  
Maria took a deep breath and said, "I wanted to tell you something I should have when we first met. I.couldn't bring myself to tell you.because.I guess you could say I'm a wimp. I was so scared that.you wouldn't believe me but.waiting this long to tell you has only made it worse." She looked at him to see he was totally confused. Everything depended upon him believing her. Her love for him.her disease.and the fact that she would be cured; it all depended upon this. "I'm the reincarnation of Maria Robotnik."  
  
@-----------  
  
"Shadow, I meant to tell you about Maria's disease." Dr. Gerald said, trying to convince an extremely mad Shadow.  
  
"Maria's my best friend! Why shouldn't I have known about it?" He said, crossing his arms.  
  
"I had just created you, I didn't want you to be burdened with such information."  
  
"If you told me then-"  
  
"Then what? What would you do?"  
  
"I'd try to find a cure!"  
  
"That is what I have been trying to do, that is why we are up here on this space colony and not Earth. Do you understand?"  
  
".Yes.."  
  
@------------  
  
"I'm sorry but.I just can't believe that." Shadow replied, clearly shocked but also composed as he gave his answer. He couldn't believe she would say something like that and expect her to believe it right off the bat. "You really don't strike me as her at all, I'm sorry."  
  
"It's alright." Maria whispered, as she felt her insides shatter. Her world was falling apart in front of her; her hope was crushed. It wasn't his fault; no, it was hers. She couldn't tell him in time. She couldn't even tell him that she had NIBS. When she thought of it, her mind froze over as if an ice cube hit it. 'If he doesn't believe that I am Maria, then how will help me with my disease? He won't.'  
  
"No, it's not." Shadow said, standing tall. "I can see how much I'm hurting you. She is a big part of my past so I can't just believe everything I hear."  
  
"I said it's alright." Maria squeaked, holding back her tears so that she could finish the conversation. "I was expecting an answer like this. I know it is not always easy to believe. I would try to persuade you but it is your heart and nothing can change the way you think about things."  
  
"Maria-"  
  
"Don't worry!" Maria said, turning away from him. "I have to go to the bathroom now. Thanks for listening, Shadow." She left him standing there and didn't turn back. If she did, she'd be sure she would crumble at the sight of his hurt eyes. (Come on! Of course Shadow would be sad if he hurt someone with his thinking! Just wanted to make it clear what was happening)  
  
@-----------  
  
Maria headed toward the exit before someone grabbed her hand. She turned to see Tails. "Hmm? Tails, what is it?"  
  
"I wanted to know where you are going. The dance room is the other way." Tails said, pointing to the open doorway.  
  
"I'm going home. I'm really tired, I won't wake up tomorrow morning if I don't leave now." Maria lied, wiping her face.  
  
"Don't walk home by yourself! I'll get Shadow to drive you-"  
  
"No, no! I don't want anyone to leave early because of me!" Maria said. "I'll be fine walking home. I have gotten into worse trouble."  
  
"But Maria-"  
  
"Don't worry, I'll walk her home." Yukina said, stepping up from behind them. "She'll be in good hands. I'm her friend."  
  
"See?" Maria said.  
  
"I can't argue with that." Tails sighed. "Oh yeah, before you go- can you come with me tomorrow morning to pick Cream up from the airport?"  
  
"Sure, I'd love to meet her!" Maria replied.  
  
"Okay then, I'll leave you alone." Tails said; "Have a safe walk home."  
  
@-----------  
  
"So tell me how your conversation went?" Yukina asked as they walking down the bustling streets. "From the look on your face it must not have been to good."  
  
"He rejected me." Maria sniffled, "He wasn't trying to be mean but it hurt me none the less. You see, I am the reincarnation of a girl named Maria Robotnik; someone Shadow used to know as a childhood friend. I have had her memories since I was a little girl; it was so important to me to find that black hedgehog and tell him that I was here. Unfortunately, I've grown shy and weak over the years which prevented me from telling him sooner."  
  
"Do you have proof that you are in fact Maria?" Yukina asked.  
  
"I do." Maria sighed, "I have the same disease she had, NIBS. It is impossible to catch it now."  
  
"Why didn't you tell him that? It sounds like all he was looking for was proof."  
  
"I froze up."  
  
"I see." Yukina said, thoughtfully touching her necklace, "I don't think it's over. Next time, make sure you tell him that information."  
  
Maria nodded.  
  
@--------------  
  
"Ah! This was a great night!" Amy sighed, leaning against the entranceway. The gang met up there. "Sonic was such a sweetie, he danced with me even though I stepped on his feet!"  
  
"Awww, come on. It wasn't that big of a deal." Sonic said, blushing.  
  
"I think it was." Knuckles teased, placing his arm around Rouge.  
  
"Is everyone here?" Rouge asked, looking around.  
  
"Yup, me, you, Knuckles, Shadow, Sonic and Amy." Tails said, counting.  
  
"Wait, What about Maria?" Shadow asked.  
  
"Oh yeah!" Tails said, "She left early, she said see was tired."  
  
"What? Left early?! How'd she get home?" Sonic shouted.  
  
"Her friend Yukina walked her home. I think she made it home okay." Tails said, sweat dropping.  
  
"The only way to truly find out is to get home." Amy pointed out.  
  
"I'll get the car." Shadow said.  
  
@-----------------  
  
The late Maria lay sprawled out on her bed with Shadow next to her. Both of them were looking out the window.  
  
"Maria?" Shadow asked, facing towards her.  
  
"What is it Shadow?" Maria said, turning to look at him.  
  
"Remember that book we read, "Where's Waldo"?" The last page was the hardest because everyone looked like Waldo and you didn't know which one was him." Shadow said.  
  
"Yes, but you were able to find the real one, it was the one carrying the books, no one else was carrying them." Maria said, smiling.  
  
"Well, I wanted to say that.if there was a whole room of Maria's, I just no I would be able to find you; the real you. It's because we're best friends." Shadow said.  
  
"I'm sure you would find me," Maria laughed, "I know you would."  
  
@-------------------  
  
Tears silently trickled down Maria's cheeks and on to the pillowcase of her bed. She remembered that time when he had said that, she had thought it was the sweetest thing. Now, in the real world, Shadow couldn't possibly her, since she was right here. How she wished he would believe her. He still believes the late Maria is dead or that she is still out there and that he has to find her first. "Sh-sh-shadow.you.said.you could.pick.me out of any crowd.you said."  
  
@---------------------  
  
Shadow walked up to the side of the car while Sonic, who was also driving, went to his. As he unlocked the car, a small familiar voice spoke from behind him, "Shadow, is that you?"  
  
Shadow turned around to see Xenia standing there, disguised as Maria. She looks exactly as she did when she met with Maria, the furry. (I will call her Xenia whenever she shows up or speaks because it will get really confusing with three Maria's running around. You'll get used to it.)  
  
"M-Maria?" Shadow stuttered dropping his car keys on the ground.  
  
"It's been so long, hasn't it?" She said softly, "I knew I would find you again Shadow."  
  
"I thought you-" Shadow started.  
  
"After you left ARK, I was captured and brought to GUN headquarters. They treated my wounds and then kept me locked up in a lab with Dr. Gerald. Using everything that was in the lab, he transformed me into a hedgehog so that GUN wouldn't destroy me, rather, they would keep me for experimenting. They froze me and I had just awakened a few days ago. Luckily, I was able to find you. I've been waiting too long to see you again, Shadow." Xenia said.  
  
"Maria." He whispered, his hands shaking slightly. He held her tight.  
  
Sonic saw the whole thing with shock spread across his face. 'This can't be happening.Maria.this girl just can't be her!' Xenia looked at Sonic and her face turned as dark as the malicious smirk on her face. Sonic knew then, that he was right, yet all he could do was stand there and pity both Shadow and Maria.  
  
@----------------  
  
"Are you doing anything today?" Rouge asked, yawning as she set her place at the kitchen table.  
  
"I'm going out this morning." Shadow replied, reading a magazine at the table.  
  
"Really now? Any special reason? Are you going with anyone?" Rouge asked, curious.  
  
"None of your business." Shadow replied, turning a page.  
  
"Hmph."  
  
"OH MAN!!!!!" cried a voice, coming from upstairs. There was loud thumping and the sound of a door slamming.  
  
"That must be Maria.I wonder what's up?" Rouge said.  
  
"." Shadow didn't say anything. He really didn't want to see her for fear she would still look heartbroken.  
  
After a few loud thumps, Maria came down the stairs and ran into the kitchen. She totally ignored Shadow and Rouge's gawking faces as she opened the refrigerator a poured some milk. She swallowed it in one gulp and ran around looking for her shoes with swirly marks for eyes.  
  
"What's the rush?" Rouge asked, grabbing Maria's shoes from the front door; exactly where it's always been.  
  
"I promised Tails I'd come with him to pick up his friend from the airport! I overslept! If I don't hurry I'll be late!" Maria yelled, stuffing her feet into her shoes. "Oh yeah, I won't be here for lunch. I'm going to spend the day with Tails and Cream."  
  
Maria stopped for a second before opening the door. "Bye Rouge." She then backed up so she could she into the kitchen where Shadow was and smiled, "See you, Shadow!"  
  
Shadow looked up from his magazine in surprise; he wasn't expecting her to talk to him. He smiled and went back to reading.  
  
Maria then ran out the door and sprouted her wings so that she flew over the roofs of the houses. She looked down at the house for a little while and then flew off.  
  
@--------  
  
"And then Cheese went into Mother's cookie jar without permission. Mother never found out though, I didn't tell. I couldn't, Cheese is my best friend." Cream said, finishing her story.  
  
"Chao, Chaaaaaoooo!" Cheese cooed.  
  
Maria was surprised at how much she liked Cream. Cream was such a sweet and very polite girl. They had a lot of fun that day, going to the movies, eating out and Tails seemed like he was enjoying himself too.  
  
"Hey, Maria!" Yukina yelled, crossing the street. She looked at Cream and Cheese and smiled. "So you are Cream? Nice to meet you. I'm Yukina, a friend of Maria."  
  
"It's very nice to meet you too." Cream said, bowing.  
  
"I got just the lunch for the occasion, a cream cheese bagel!" Yukina said, pulling out a half eaten bagel. Yukina looked behind them. "Hey, is that Shadow?"  
  
Maria turned around and saw Shadow walking down the street. He was smiling and holding hands with.no.way.  
  
"That girl he's with looks just like the late Maria only furry style.it can't be." Tails said. "Maria, you are the real reincarnation, aren't you?"  
  
Maria stood there shocked, wondering how Xenia could have possibly met him. It's too late now; her plan has already begun. Suddenly, Maria's eyes turned to anger, "Yes, I am."  
  
Xenia turned around when Shadow wasn't looking; an evil grin was spread across her face. She lifted her hand into the air, and at that moment, Maria collapsed to the ground.  
  
"Maria! Maria! Are you okay?" Cream cried, gently nudging Maria.  
  
"Uhhh." Maria moaned, slowly pushing herself up. 'Xenia has complete control over my disease. She just attacked me using it.'  
  
"That.that thing.it caused you to collapse, didn't it? I can sense it." Yukina said, her necklace started to glow with a cool light.  
  
"You're right." Maria said, standing up. "She did that to me, she is a fake." She looked down at her feet and added, "And there is nothing I can do."  
  
Kimmie's Corner:  
  
Kimmie: Whoowhee! This is the longest chapter yet!  
  
Shadow: You're telling me.  
  
Kimmie: I'd like to say that I'm sorry that it's taking so long to get my chapters up. I'll never give up though; this story will be finished!  
  
Shadow: You should see the amount of work she lugs home everyday! She has her worst subjects too, until Christmas it will take a while for her finish a chapter.  
  
Kimmie: You can't say I've cheated you though; my chapters are always long. I know I hate when I'm reading a fanfic that the chapters are too short! I never wanted to do that to you guys.  
  
Shadow: This chapter is 11 pages long with ten point words, I wonder how many more pages it will be on ff.net?  
  
Kimmie: The story is almost over! According to the rate I am going, the story will be done at Chapter 10! Three more chapters!  
  
I want to thank Rebound for the drawings of Maria! They were really good! I can't believe you were able to draw that just from my descriptions! I thought I was doing a bad job as far as describing what she looks like goes. The only thing is, Maria's bangs (Which I forgot to mention) Look like Amy's bangs, not as the late Maria's would look. I said I would draw a picture of her so you all could see, I will put that in the next chapter!  
  
Also, if you go to my profile, I will write my progress on this story so you know how long it will be till the next chapter. Thank you all so much!  
  
Preview of Next Chapter:  
  
"Hi there, Sonic here! As the winter festival draws ever so closer, everyone is rehearsing for the play. That girl (Xenia) has practically strapped herself to Shadow's side and I know it is hurting Maria. I can see it. I don't trust that girl but I can't convince Shadow to think otherwise. Can't he see Maria is the one true person for him? I know things are tough but still, I think this problem runs much deeper.  
  
Maria finally steps up to the plate in chapter 8: Fire, The Final Straw  
  
Gotta juice!" 


End file.
